Cessna 182P accident near Danville, California, January 20, 1999
On January 20, 1999 at about 3:35 am local time, a Cessna 182P, registered N8579M, was destroyed in an accident near Danville, California. It was a positioning flight under general aviation rules (Part 91). 1 person was killed. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
The pilot's disregard for the preflight weather briefing, and his intentional continuation into adverse weather conditions.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- January 20, 1999 · about 3:35 am local time
- Place
- Danville, California · map
- Type
- Accident
- Injuries
- 1 person was killed.
- Weather
- visual conditions (good weather)
- Aircraft
- Cessna 182P · all 182Ps on the register
- Registration
- N8579M · no longer on the register · serial 18264633
- Damage
- Destroyed
- Flight
- Positioning flight · general aviation rules (Part 91)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
The pilot received a preflight weather briefing and filed a VFR flight plan prior to departing Sacramento, California. During the briefing, the pilot was advised of forecast IFR conditions, with ceilings occasionally less than 1,000 feet and 3 miles visibility. Airmets advised mountain obscuration with scattered moderate to heavy rain. The FSS briefer concluded that after 1900-2000, the weather was going to reduce conditions to marginal VFR flight conditions. When the pilot opened his VFR flight plan by radio the briefer again asked him if he had the airmet for mountain obscuration, IFR conditions, and current information for the route. The pilot said yes he did and the briefer concluded by telling the pilot that VFR flight was not recommended. After the pilot arrived at Livermore airport he was asked by the local controller if he had a clearance on file or if he'd like to file one before he departed Livermore, and the pilot declined. The accident site was located between the elevation of 1,900 to 2,000 feet msl on a route consistent with a downwind departure from Livermore. A weather study by the Safety Board found that the airplane most likely experienced light to moderate rain after takeoff, with the airplane encountering heavy to very heavy rain near the accident site. Witnesses who were in the vicinity of the accident location confirmed that it was raining heavily near the accident timeframe.
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: single-engine land; instrument: airplane; instrument: helicopter; rotorcraft: helicopter
- Flight time: 3,819 hours in all; 112 in this make and model; 85 in the last 90 days; 18 in the last 30 days
- Medical certificate: Class 1 (valid medical--no waivers/lim.)
- Seat: left
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 10,067 hours
- Last inspection: 100-hour inspection, December 15, 1998; 28 hours since
- Maximum gross weight: 2,950 lb
- Seats: 4
- Landing gear: fixed
- Engine: Continental O-470 (piston); 0 hours total
The flight
- Departed from: LVK Livermore CA at 3:23 am
- Destination: SAC Sacramento CA
- Flight plan: VFR
- Runway 0
Weather at the time
- Light: night, dark
- Wind: from 220° at 5 knots
- Visibility: 3 statute miles
- Sky: overcast at 3,000 ft; scat at 2,200 ft
- Temperature: 54°F (12°C), dew point 54°F (12°C)
- Altimeter: 29.00 inHg
- Observation at 3:53 am from LVK, 7 miles away
Injuries
| Fatal | Serious | Minor | None | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crew | 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.
Other NTSB records under N8579M the same tail number, which may have belonged to a different aircraft at the time
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.