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Accidents · NTSB ATL88LA165 · Preliminary: the investigation is not finished

Piper PA-28-161 accident near Lawrenceville, Georgia, May 5, 1988

On May 5, 1988 at about 3:10 pm local time, a Piper PA-28-161, registered N8205, was destroyed in an accident near Lawrenceville, Georgia (G Winnett Co-Brisco Fld airport). It was an instructional 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 November 2, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
May 5, 1988 · about 3:10 pm local time · cases in 1988
Place
Lawrenceville, Georgia · G Winnett Co-Brisco Fld · cases near this airport
Type
Accident
Injuries
No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Piper PA-28-161 · all PA-28-161s on the register
Registration
N8205 · registry record · serial 28 8316048
Damage
Destroyed
Flight
Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

THE STUDENT PLT RETURNED TO THE DEPARTURE ARPT AND ATTEMPTED A LANDING WITH A CROSS WIND GUSTING TO AN ESTIMATED 20 KTS. AFTER LANDING, A GUST OF WIND WAS ENCOUNTERED. THE AIRCRAFT BECAME AIRBORNE. THE STUDENT PILOT HELD THE AIRCRAFT'S CONTROLS RIGID. THE AIRCRAFT DROPPED ONTO THE RUNWAY AND SKIDDED OFF THE RUNWAY TO THE LEFT.

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: student
  • Flight time: 25 hours in all; 24 in this make and model; 25 in the last 90 days; 4 as pilot in command
  • Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: left

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 1,470 hours
  • Last inspection: annual inspection, March 10, 1988; 50 hours since
  • Maximum gross weight: 2,325 lb
  • Seats: 4
  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Engine: Lycoming O-320-D3G (piston); 0 hours total
  • Operator: Air Center Gwinnett

The flight

  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 25, 4,000 ft by 75 ft

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Wind: from 350° at 12 knots
  • Visibility: 7 statute miles
  • Sky: scat at 3,000 ft
  • Temperature: 63°F (17°C), dew point 46°F (8°C)
  • Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
  • Observation at 2:50 pm from FTY, 30 miles away

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew1

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.

Connections how this case links to the rest of the register

Aircraft
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Analytics

The whole map of how records connect · these connections as data: /graph/accident/ATL88LA165.json.

The bigger picture in Aviation Analytics: accidents over time since 1982, by model, by phase of flight and conditions, by place and on the map.

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 does not name anyone involved, its policy at this time. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.