No fatalities

CESSNA 172 N accident at San Marcos, TX, 7 Jan 2026

San Marcos, TX, United States

On January 7, 2026, a CESSNA 172 N operated by US Aviation Academy was involved in an aviation accident near San Marcos, TX. No fatalities were reported. Investigators recorded the probable cause as: The flight instructor’s failure to properly configure the elevator trim for the takeoff, that resulted in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the flight instructor’s failure to follow the before takeoff checklist. This summary draws on records from NTSB; 17 related events involving the same aircraft type or operator are linked below.

SourcesNTSBPrimary reportUpdated 2026-08-03Data APIEditorial standards

Probable cause

The flight instructor’s failure to properly configure the elevator trim for the takeoff, that resulted in a hard landing. Contributing to the accident was the flight instructor’s failure to follow the before takeoff checklist.

— NTSB Determination

Contributing factors

Instructor/check pilotIncorrect use/operation