John Denver

[shortstripper]

I listened to a compilation of John Denver's songs on the radio earlier and was reminded what a great talent was lost.

I remember he died whilst flying his (canard homebuilt?) in the 90's and wondered if there was ever an official finding as to the cause of his accident?

RIP

SS

[mcgoo]

from Wikepedia:

Denver apparently lost control of the aircraft while attempting to manipulate the fuel selector handle, which is located in the rear cockpit, after running out of fuel in one tank. Witnesses stated that the plane made a sudden pitch-down plunge into the water, leading to speculation that, in reaching around to the rear, Denver bumped or kicked the side-stick control.

Denver had recently purchased the aircraft and had only had about a half-hour orientation flight the day before the accident. The NTSB cited Denver's unfamiliarity with the aircraft and his failure to have the aircraft refueled as causal factors in the accident. Denver was the sole occupant of the aircraft. Prior to the accident, the FAA found that he did not meet the medical standards prescribed in Part 67 of the Federal Aviation Regulations due to his ongoing drinking problem, and a determination was made that he was not qualified for any class of medical at the time. At least a third-class medical was required to exercise the privileges of his pilot certificate

[bookworm]

NTSB report (http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/brief2.asp?ev_id=20001208X09045&ntsbno=LAX98FA008&akey=1)

[shortstripper]

Thanks.

SS

[wombat13]

Well, that's cheered me up.

[IO540]

The report is mostly speculation though, just like most of them.

It's very sad that JD got killed through some sort of loss of control. So pointless, especially for somebody with 2700hrs, IR and a Lear type rating (so he was obviously not stupid).

[shortstripper]

Nor under the influence! So much seems attached to this flaw in his character, yet his blood was clear and his doctor states that he was dry at the time. what a shame to die with such a black mark against you, when it's pretty obvious that the main causal factor was a poorly placed fuel selector. :sad:

SS