Was John Denver drunk when his plane crashed?

Answer 1

Excerts from a CNN news report of his death. October 13, 1997

Web posted at: 1:38 p.m. EDT (1738 GMT)

SALINAS, California (CNN) -- Singer and songwriter John Denver, whose '70 hits such as "Rocky Mountain High" and "Take Me Home, Country Roads" gained him worldwide fame, was killed Sunday when his small aircraft plunged into Monterey Bay, officials said Monday. He was 53. His remains were positively identified by the Monterey County Coroner's Office through fingerprints obtained from the state of Colorado, Monterey County Sheriff Norman Hicks said. The National Transportation Safety Board was pursuing details on the cause of the crash itself, while the sheriff's coroners will be investigating the circumstances surrounding the cause of death, he said. Denver was piloting the two-seat light plane along the California coast when the engine failed shortly after 5 p.m., plunging him into ocean waters just past Monterey Bay. He was believed to be the sole person on board the single-engine fiberglass plane, which he owned. It was considered an experimental aircraft, said Pacific Grove police Lt. Carl Miller. It took officials several hours to positively identify Denver's remains.

Denver owned a home on Monterey Peninsula, a coastal area south of San Francisco, and visited the area often, Hicks said. Lt. Dave Allard, spokesman for the Monterey County sheriff's department, said an autopsy would be conducted Monday. Toxicology tests, standard for fatal crashes, also will be conducted, he said. Teri Martell, whose sister Annie was the singer's first wife, had told CNN early Monday that Denver "was a very experienced pilot." Martell said Annie was told he was practicing taking off and landing when the accident occurred. Born Henry John Deutschendorf, Denver traveled throughout his childhood. After studying architecture at Texas Tech, he went west in 1965 to pursue a career in folk music. Standup comics and newspaper cartoonists leapt on a 1988 "Aviation Week & Space Technology" report that Denver asked Soviet space officials to launch him to the Mir space station. The cash-strapped Soviets were reportedly considering the idea, with a price of $10 million.

Answer 2

No one quite knows, but it is believed that his Experimental Long-EZ plane, which he had only purchased recently, was unfamiliar and had a few faults.

It is believed that what happened may have been due to an unusual reconfiguration of the fuel selector valve handle and a sticky O-ring, which led to Denver pushing the right rudder pedal when he turned to switch fuel tanks by moving the fuel selector valve handle, which was now repositioned over his left shoulder. Flying at an estimated 500 feet, he did not have time to correct the turning descent this sent the plane into.

Answer 3

Faulty construction. The plane was a Long-EZ designed by Burt Rutan. The plane was used when JD bought it. Rutan did not assemble the plane. The person who did deviated from the blueprint and moved the fuel tank switch from the cockpit to the back. When he had to switch tanks, he unbuckled his seat belt and crawled in the back of the plane. As he was doing so, he inadvertently pushed the pedal that sent the plane into a dive. Two people tested the plane before he bought it. They both encountered the same problem, except they were high enough to regain control.

Answer 4

Monterey, California. 150 yards offshore - 30 feet of water

Answer 5

John Denver's plane crashed into the Pacific near Pacific Grove, California.

He crashed 150 yards offshore into 30 feet of water.

Answer 6

Rutan model homebuilt which he had just bought,he did not know where the gas tank valves were and ran out of gas crashing in the water

Answer 7

No! He was on a Rocky Mountain High!