Cessna 172M accident near Peachtree City, Georgia, August 8, 1985
On August 8, 1985 at about 4:00 pm local time, a Cessna 172M, registered N61769, was substantially damaged in an accident near Peachtree City, Georgia (Falcon Field). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- August 8, 1985 · about 4:00 pm local time
- Place
- Peachtree City, Georgia · Falcon Field · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172M · all 172Ms on the register
- Registration
- N61769 · registry record · serial 17264787
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
PILOT WAS RENEWING PROFICIENCY IN LIGHT ACFT. ON FIRST TOUCH AND GO LANDING, ACCORDING TO HIS STATEMENT DURING PHONE INTERVIEW, HE FLARED, ACFT BALLOONED, LANDED HARD AND PORPOISED. DURING ENSUING ROLL OUT NOSE OF ACFT SETTLED AND PROP CONTACTED RUNWAY. ACFT WAS STOPPED AND WHEN EXAMINED NOSE GEAR FOUND TO HAVE COLLAPSED.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
Pilot
- Certificate: airline transport pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 4,150 hours in all; 175 in this make and model; 158 in the last 90 days; 2,958 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Last inspection: inspection type not recorded
- Maximum gross weight: 2,300 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming O-320 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 31, 4,600 ft by 50 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 040° at 4 knots
- Visibility: 7 statute miles
- Sky: broken clouds at 3,000 ft; not recorded
- Temperature: 81°F (27°C), dew point 70°F (21°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 4:53 pm from FTY, 20 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.