Cessna 172R accident near Lawrenceville, Georgia, January 28, 2021
On January 28, 2021 at about 3:45 pm local time, a 1997 Cessna 172R, registered N997MC, was substantially damaged in an accident during landing (landing roll) near Lawrenceville, Georgia (Gwinnett County - Briscoe Fld airport). 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).
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The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's failure to maintain directional control during landing in a gusting crosswind, which resulted in a loss of control and runway excursion.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 4, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 28, 2021 · about 3:45 pm local time
- Place
- Lawrenceville, Georgia · Gwinnett County - Briscoe Fld · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 172R, built 1997 · all 172Rs on the register
- Registration
- N997MC · registry record · serial 17280039
- Damage
- Substantial damage
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot was returning to his home airport after a short trip. Other than mild turbulence, there was nothing eventful about the trip. Upon nearing the airport and listening to the weather, he understood that winds were gusting from the northwest at 12 to 20 knots. This was on the high end of his personal minimums, but within the tolerance range that he had flown in the past. As he was preparing to land, he experienced some greater turbulence and crosswinds. The air traffic controller in the control tower gave him a straight in approach, and subsequently cleared him to land on runway 25. The approach was turbulent, and the plane was being bounced and pushed left intermittently. Due to the wind gust advisory, he landed with only 10°of flaps and about 10 knots more airspeed. His estimated speed over the threshold of the runway was about 70 knots. He stated that it was pretty gusty crossing the runway threshold. He landed the airplane and once the nosewheel was down, he started braking. Unexpectedly the plane moved to the left quickly. It seemed to him as though a large gust hit the airplane from the northwest side and pushed the airplane sharply to the left. He worked to counter the movement with right rudder but was unsuccessful in stopping the momentum. He nearly kept the airplane on the pavement, but the left tire just slipped off the edge of the runway. When the left tire contacted the newly sodded turf, combined with the recent heavy rain; the tire sunk quickly, as the turf was soft and very muddy. This rapid deceleration, and the left tire being off the pavement, caused the rear of the plane to “rise” and the propeller struck the runway. With this motion, and the left tire being below the pavement, the airplane pivoted to the left, and the left-wing tip struck the surface. The airplane came to rest on its landing gear, just off the runway surface.
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 on ground during landing (landing roll) defining event
- Runway excursion during landing (landing roll)
The NTSB's findings
- Personnel issues › Task performance › Use of equip/info › Aircraft control › Pilot
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Crosswind › Response/compensation
- Environmental issues › Conditions/weather/phenomena › Wind › Gusts › Response/compensation
- Aircraft › Aircraft oper/perf/capability › Performance/control parameters › Directional control › Not attained/maintained
Pilot
- Certificate: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 121 hours in all; 119 in this make and model; 53 in the last 90 days; 7 in the last 30 days; 59 as pilot in command
- Last flight review: November 23, 2020
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (without waivers/limitations)
- Seat: left
- Injury: no injuries
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 1,615 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 1, 2020
- Maximum gross weight: 2,450 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Lycoming IO-360-L2A (piston); 1,615 hours total
- Operator: Aeroventures Flying Club INC
The flight
- Departed from: GMU Lawrenceville GA at 2:54 pm
- Destination: LZU Lawrenceville GA
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 25, 6,000 ft by 100 ft
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: at 9 knots, gusting 18
- Visibility: 10 statute miles
- Temperature: 32°F (0°C), dew point 32°F (0°C)
- Altimeter: 30.39 inHg
- Observation at 10:46 am from KLZU
Weather report (METAR): KLZU 281546Z 29009G18KT 250V330 10SM CLR A3039 RMK AO2 $
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flig | 1 |
About this page
Everything above comes from the NTSB's public accident database: the narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words, and the coded tables behind its report (pilot, aircraft, flight, weather, injuries, sequence of events) are written out in plain English. Pilots' ages, home towns and medical details are left out on purpose. The docket at the NTSB holds the report as a PDF and the investigation's photographs and documents. This site never names pilots, passengers or anyone else involved. A preliminary report describes what is known soon after the event and can change; the final report, with the probable cause, usually follows one to two years later and this page is refreshed when it does. Case number ERA21LA119.