Police say a flight instructor has died and two student pilots survived the crash of a small plane returning to a North Texas airport.

Denton police Officer Ryan Grelle says searchers located the wreckage shortly before 6 a.m. Tuesday, northwest of Denton Municipal Airport.

Controllers lost contact with the Cessna 172 around 1:45 a.m. Tuesday. Grelle says the plane, from US Aviation Academy of Denton, had done a training flight to San Antonio.

Grelle says a survivor, located walking to get help, had head and leg injuries. The instructor was dead at the scene. The second student was in the wreckage.

Both survivors were taken to a Fort Worth hospital. No details were available on their conditions.

US Aviation Academy didn't immediately return a call from The Associated Press.