Cessna 310N N5038Q

Summary

On 10 December 1999 at about 01:09 local time, a Cessna 310N registered N5038Q was involved in an accident near Danville, Illinois, United States. 2 people were on board and 2 died. The aircraft was destroyed. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

10 December 1999 at 01:09

Classification

Accident

Location

Danville, Illinois, United States

Nearest airport

Danville-Vermilion County (DNV)

Coordinates

40.1394, -87.6097

Aircraft

Cessna 310N

Registration

N5038Q

Category

Airplane

Engines

2

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Instructional

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Unknown → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Destroyed

Weather

IMC

Light

Night/Dark

NTSB number

CHI00FA039

2 people died.

Aircraft control not being maintained by the flight instructor and the flight instructor's inadequate supervision of the flight. Factors to the accident were the flight instructor's VFR flight into IMC weather conditions, the inadequate preflight planning/preparation conducted by the flight instructor, the dark night, the low ceiling, and the rain.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The instructional flight crashed 1-sm mile south of the airport during initial climb. A witness reported that while the airplane was taking off he heard a, '...whoosh sound and thought an engine failure had occurred...' The witness stated that the aircraft, from an altitude of 100-200 feet above ground level (agl), started a high rate descent towards the runway, then recovered into level flight for a few seconds, then began a climb that took the aircraft into the clouds. Weather conditions at the time of the accident were reported to be instrument meteorological conditions with 2-sm visibility, partial obscuration due to light precipitation, and an overcast ceiling of 1,300-feet. The accident occurred during a dark night. The governing FAA air traffic control center, Champaign approach, reported no communications were received from or transmitted to the accident airplane and additionally no flight plan information was filed or requested. No anomalies were found with the airframe, or its related systems, that could be associated with a preexisting condition. No anomalies were found with either engine, or their related systems, that could be associated with a preexisting condition.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.