Cessna 421 accident near Canton, Georgia, March 4, 2017
On March 4, 2017 at about 5:23 am local time, a 1970 Cessna 421, registered N421KL, was substantially damaged in an accident during approach (VFR pattern final) near Canton, Georgia (Cherokee County Airport). It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain control of the airplane during a night visual landing approach. Contributing to the accident was the pilot's impairment due to his use of a combination of medications.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- March 4, 2017 · about 5:23 am local time
- Place
- Canton, Georgia · Cherokee County Airport · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 421 B, built 1970 · all 421s on the register
- Registration
- N421KL · no longer on the register · serial 421B0015
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The 69-year-old commercial pilot was making a personal cross-country flight in the newly-purchased airplane. When the airplane was on final approach to the destination airport in night visual meteorological conditions, airport surveillance video showed it pitch up and roll to the right. The airplane then descended in a nose-down attitude to impact in a ravine on the right side of the runway. During the descent over the ravine the right wing came in contact with a powerline that briefly cut power to the airport. Postaccident examination of the airframe, engines, and their components revealed no evidence of mechanical anomalies or malfunctions that would have precluded normal operation. The pilot's toxicology findings identified five different impairing medications: clonazepam, temazepam, hydrocodone, nortriptyline, and diphenhydramine. Although the results were from cavity blood and may not accurately reflect antemortem levels, the hydrocodone, temazepam, and diphenhydramine levels were high enough to likely have had some psychoactive effects. While the exact effects of these drugs in combination are not known, it is likely that the pilot was impaired to some degree by his use of this combination of medications, which likely contributed to his failure to maintain control of the airplane.
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
What happened, in order
- Loss of control in flight during approach (VFR pattern final) defining event
- Collision with terrain or object (not controlled flight into terrain) during approach (VFR pattern final)
The NTSB's findings
- cause Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Pitch control › Not attained/maintained
- factor Personnel issues › Physical › Impairment/incapacitation › Prescription medication › Pilot
- factor Personnel issues › Physical › Impairment/incapacitation › OTC medication › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Light condition › Dark › Effect on operation
Pilot
- Certificate: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 11.8 hours in all; 11.8 in this make and model
- Last flight review: March 3, 2017
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (with waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: fatal
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 7,522.4 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, March 1, 2017; 30 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 7,200 lb
- Seats: 7
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine 1: Cont Motor GTSIO-520-D21 (piston); 2,048 hours total
- Engine 2: Cont Motor GTSIO-520-H (piston); 2,048 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: RVS Tulsa OK at 2:30 am
- Destination: CNI Canton GA
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 05, 5,001 ft by 75 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: night
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Sky: clear
- Temperature: 37°F (3°C), dew point 5°F (-15°C)
- Altimeter: 30.54 inHg
- Observation at 5:10 am from CNI
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flight crew | 1 |
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
13 documents, released by the NTSB on December 10, 2018. View them here, or download them; the NTSB redacts some personal details before release, and this site shows the NTSB's own titles rather than its file names.
| # | Document | What it is | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Witness Statements | PDF, 5 pages | View Download |
| 2 | Memorandum for Record - CFI | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 3 | Memorandum for Record - Southwest Aviation & Brokerage | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 4 | Video File (Shelf Item) | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 5 | Pilot's Logbook Excerpts | PDF, 6 pages | View Download |
| 6 | Maintenance Records | PDF, 15 pages | View Download |
| 7 | Photo Array | PDF, 5 pages | View Download |
| 8 | Toxicological Report | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
| 9 | Medical Officer's Factual Report | PDF, 7 pages | View Download |
| 10 | Fuel Monitor - Specialist's Factual Report | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
| 11 | Statement of Party Representatives to NTSB Investigation | PDF, 16 pages | View Download |
| 12 | Evidence Control Form | PDF, 1 page | View Download |
| 13 | Release of Aircraft Wreckage, NTSB Form 6120.15 | PDF, 2 pages | View Download |
The same docket at the NTSB · documents without a copy here are fetched from the NTSB when you open them.
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.