Cessna 172 N345QA accident near Williston, Florida

Preliminary information

On September 13, 2025, about 0733 eastern daylight time, a Cessna 172G, N345QA, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near Williston, Florida. The pilot was not injured. The airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 personal flight.

The pilot reported that the flight departed Orlando Executive Airport (ORL), Orlando, Florida, about 0600 with 17 gallons of fuel onboard, overflew Cross City Airport (CTY), Cross City, Florida, and was scheduled to land at Williston Regional Airport (X60), Williston, Florida.

About 1.5 hours after departure, while the airplane transitioned from the base leg to the final leg of the airport traffic pattern for runway 05 at X60, the engine experienced a momentary loss of power, followed shortly thereafter by a total loss of power. The pilot was unable to restore power to the engine and performed a forced landing to a field. During the landing roll, the nose landing gear collapsed, the airplane nosed over and came to rest in a grass field about 0.25-mile from the approach end of runway 05. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage and left wing strut.

The airplane was retained for further examination.

Text from the NTSB; a preliminary report can change and names no cause. Open the NTSB docket for ERA25LA345 for the full record.