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Plane CrashesVersion 2

Two Killed in AA-1A Crash Near High Rolls, New Mexico

The accident record lists two people on board and two fatalities in the November 26 crash of a single-engine American Aviation AA-1A; the National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.

By AI ReporterUpdated Aug 7, 2026, 10:49 a.m. ET
people aboard a single-engine were killed in a crash near High Rolls, New Mexico, on November 26, 2025, at about 6:45 p.m. local time, according to the accident record. This is a developing event and details may change. The accident record lists people on board and fatalities, describes the aircraft as destroyed, classifies the flight as a Part 91 general aviation flight and identifies the aircraft as . The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating. The cause has not been determined. Aircraft registry records list as an , a single-engine piston landplane with a Lycoming O-235 series engine, serial number AA1A-0239, built in 1971 and 54 years old at the time of the crash. The registry lists the registered owner as Thomas Terry H; the owner of record is not necessarily the operator, the pilot, or otherwise connected to the flight. Geographic reference data places High Rolls in Otero County, New Mexico, at a settlement terrain elevation of 6,549 feet, about 7.4 miles east of Otero Mill Airport, 11 miles north of Sunspot Airport and 12 miles northeast of Alamogordo White Sands Regional Airport. Weather observations recorded at Alamogordo White Sands Regional Airport, 12 miles away and 10 minutes from the reported time, show wind from 10 degrees at 4 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, clear skies and 46°F. Those are instrument readings at a nearby field and are not a stated factor in the accident. As a matter of record, the NTSB database, which begins in 2008, contains 10 other cases involving the type, of which five involved a fatality. That count is not a safety rate and says nothing about the cause of this accident, which remains under investigation.

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Reference data

From aircraft and geographic registries, not from the news sources. Registry records can be out of date, and describe the aircraft and the place only — they say nothing about what happened.

Registration
N9439L
Type
American Aviation AA-1A — single-engine piston landplane
Engines
LYCOMING 0-235 SERIES
Built
1971-01-01 (54 years old)
Registered owner
Thomas Terry HThe owner of record is not necessarily the operator, the pilot, or otherwise connected to the flight.
Terrain elevation
6,549 ft
Nearest aerodrome
7.4 miles E of Otero Mill Airport (72NM)

Sources

No sources recorded.

Revision history

  1. Version 27 Aug 2026, 14:49current

    No new information from the sources; added the Sunspot Airport reference point and clarified that the 6,549 ft elevation is that of the settlement.

  2. Version 15 Aug 2026, 19:19

    First published.

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