‘This one’s for real’: Flight instructor says he had seconds to think before crashing in Philly park

Watch the full interview with Aytch in the video above

The flight instructor of a small plane that crashed in a Northeast Philadelphia park on Wednesday recalled having a few seconds to decide where he was going to land after the engine lost power.

John Aytch, a certified flight instructor for Fly Legacy Aviation, and his student, an off‑duty Philadelphia police officer, were hurt in the crash after they had to maneuver an emergency landing at Fluehr Park on April 1, 2026.

Aytch said about 20 minutes before the crash, he and his student had just simulated the procedure on what to do in case of an engine failure.

“We were coming back in after practicing the maneuvers. We were descending to the appropriate altitude and when he went to add power he mentioned we didn’t have power,” Aytch said.

That’s when Aytch took control of the aircraft.

“This one’s for real,” Aytch remembered thinking.

The instructor said he quickly realized they weren’t going to be able to land at the Northeast Philadelphia Airport — and he knew he had to act fast.

“From that point it was like, what’s the safest place to land that won’t cause damage to the properties and stuff like that?” Aytch said.

NBC10 obtained audio recordings of the moments leading up to the crash, which are also under review.

In the audio, you can hear the pilot tell air traffic control, “We are having a little bit of engine problems right now.”

Then you can hear the air traffic controller assessing the severity of the emergency, “Do you need to land now or can you follow behind them?”

The pilot responded, “We need to land now.”

Aytch said he had about 15 to 20 seconds to process everything and think about his options.

“I remember coming over the river and I was like, ‘no,'” Aytch recalled. “I-95, it was rush hour so I thought, ‘that’s not going to happen.’ The golf course that is just a little farther north was my original plan, just from experience of flying out there, but I knew we wouldn’t make that as well.”

Aytch then saw Fluehr Park, on Grant and Torresdale avenues, and decided that was the safest option.

“We train for these scenarios. When it does eventually happen you just react, you know the procedures, you know what to do. I definitely feel proud of that,” Aytch said.

Aytch credited his extensive training for the outcome and said he is excited to go back to the skies after he fully recovers.

“Definitely get back into the aircraft, continue instructing. I still got the passion for it. Even my student who was with me, we were talking earlier he said ‘I’ll see you soon’, so he definitely has the passion for it,” Aytch said.

Federal investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration are expected to review the wreckage and interview responders as part of their ongoing investigation.