Cessna 310N accident near Danville, Illinois, December 10, 1999
On December 10, 1999 at about 1:09 am local time, a Cessna 310N, registered N5038Q, was destroyed in an accident near Danville, Illinois (Danville-Vermilion County airport). It was an instructional 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
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.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- December 10, 1999 · about 1:09 am local time
- Place
- Danville, Illinois · Danville-Vermilion County · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 2 people were killed.
- Weather
- instrument conditions (cloud, fog or low visibility)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 310N · all 310Ns on the register
- Registration
- N5038Q · no longer on the register · serial 310N-0138
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Instructional flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
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.
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: commercial pilot
- Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane multi-engine; instructor: airplane single-engine; instructor: instrument airplane; instrument: airplane
- Flight time: 682 hours in all; 241 in this make and model; 47 in the last 90 days; 9 in the last 30 days; 608 as pilot in command; 310 on instruments
- Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: rgt
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 5,000 hours
- Last inspection: annual inspection, December 10, 1998; 200 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 5,200 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: retractable
- Engine: Continental IO-470-VO (piston); 0 hours total
- Fire on the ground
The flight
- Departed from: DNV at 1:09 am
- Destination: Unknown
- Flight plan: none
- Runway 0
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 310° at 3 knots
- Visibility: 2 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 1,300 ft
- Temperature: 48°F (9°C), dew point 48°F (9°C)
- Altimeter: 30.00 inHg
- Observation at 1:01 am from DNV, 1 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 2 |
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.