by Jim Timm
The following are the reports of aviation accidents that have occurred in Arizona from end of January through February.
The Accident Report will be limited because of the unexpected, and sudden passing of Craig Tompkins of the FAA SDL FSDO. As a result, there will not be a Pilot Deviation, nor NMAC Report.
We hope to use the following detailed accident information to develop safety programs, briefings, and posters/flyers that would help pilots learn from the mistakes being made by others and be able to take the necessary action to prevent them from having a similar occurrence.
The Accident/Incident report is a bit short and limited in content this time, and there were only five accidents reported. Unfortunately, we have started off the year rather poorly because since the first of the year we have had fourteen accidents reported and of these fourteen we have had a total of eight fatalities. This trend must not continue. All must be more careful in their flying, and I hope what’s happening in Arizona isn’t happening across the nation.
We’re continuing with the expanded scope of this report by using information from the Aviation Safety Network (ASN), NTSB, and APA Members. Hopefully the information from these sources will suit our purpose of trying to get an idea of what is happening out there so we can help make flying safer.
In the meantime, here are the results from the above sources.
Date: February 4, 2026
Source: ASN
Location: Prescott Airport (PRC)
Type: Socata TB21 Trinadad TC
Injuries: 1 Fatality
No Pilot Information
CRASHED ON FINAL APPROACH
The aircraft departed Santa Ana-John Wayne International Airport bound for Prescott Airport, and it impacted open desert terrain while on approach to land about 2.5 miles northeast of Prescott Regional Airport (PRC). The aircraft was destroyed in the accident.
Date: February 4, 2026
Source: ASN, FAA, NTSB
Location: Near Flagstaff Airport
Type: Bell 407 DPS Helicopter
Injuries: 2 Fatalities
No Pilot Information
LOSS OF CONTROL
The Bell 407 helicopter departed from Kingman and was destroyed when it impacted terrain in Flagstaff. The pilot and a paramedic on board sustained fatal injuries.
Multiple law enforcement departments were on the scene of an active shooter, and AZ DPS troopers on the scene requested an AZ DPS Air Unit. The DPS helicopter crashed west of the shooting situation shortly after being called. ADS-B data indicated the helicopter entered a rapid climb towards the end of the flight, with ground speeds reported as low as 4 knots. A witness video showed the helicopter in an out-of-control spin.
Date: February 6, 2026
Source: ASN, FAA, NTSB
Location: Near Gila Bend
Type: Pelegrin Tarragon (Experimental Aircraft)
Injuries: 1 Fatality, 1 Serious Injury
No Pilot Information
IN FLIGHT LOSS OF CONTROL
The Pelegrin Tarragon, an experiment aircraft, departed Stellar Air Park (P19) in Chandler, and crashed when it experienced an engine failure east of Gila Bend. The aircraft was destroyed in the accident.
Date: February 6, 2026
Source: ASN
Location: Mesa Falcon Field (FFZ)
Type: Cessna 185D Skywagon
Injuries: 1 Uninjured
No Pilot Information
EMERGENCY LANDING
The airplane declared an emergency immediately after a takeoff from the runway and made an emergency landing in a field inside the airport property.
Date: February 26, 2026
Source: ASN
Location: Glendale Municipal Airport (GEU)
Type: Remos GX
Injuries: 1 Uninjured
No Pilot Information
HARD LANDING
A Remos aircraft made a hard landing at Glendale Airport incurring a prop strike.