Cessna 182R accident near Burkes Garden, Virginia, February 19, 1985
On February 19, 1985 at about 2:00 pm local time, a Cessna 182R, registered N2370E, was destroyed in an accident near Burkes Garden, Virginia. It was a personal flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 2 people were killed. The weather was instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility).
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 October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- February 19, 1985 · about 2:00 pm local time
- Place
- Burkes Garden, Virginia
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182R · all 182Rs on the register
- Registration
- N2370E · registry record · serial 18268198
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Personal flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
THE PLT DEPARTED MANASSAS WITHOUT A CURRENT WX BRIEFING OR FILING A FLT PLAN. PLT HAD ALSO LEFT MAPS AND A LIST OF CHECKPOINTS AT HOME. HIS ROUTE OF FLT WAS INTO AN AREA OF LOW CEILINGS AND VISIBILITY. THE ACFT CRASHED INTO A MOUNTAIN AT THE 3850 FT LEVEL. WITNESSES IN THE AREA STATED THAT MOUNTAIN TOPS WERE OBSCURED AND VISIBILITY WAS POOR DUE TO FOG AND DRIZZLE. PLT WAS REPORTEDLY UNDER MENTAL STRESS DUE TO RECENT PERSONAL EVENTS.
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: private
- Ratings: single-engine land
- Flight time: 205 hours in all; 5 in this make and model; 9 in the last 90 days; 4 in the last 30 days; 174 as pilot in command
- Medical certificate: Class 3 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 881 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, January 7, 1985; 21 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 3,100 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470 (piston); 0 hours total
- Operator: Dulles Aviation,Inc.
The flight
- Departed from: W10 Manassas VA at 11:45 am
- Destination: SYI Shelbyville TN
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 240° at 7 knots
- Visibility: 25 statute miles
- Sky: not recorded
- Temperature: 36°F (2°C), dew point 34°F (1°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:50 pm from BLF, 15 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 1 | |||
| Passengers | 1 |
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.
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.