Are you eager to know how did john denver die? John Denver, the iconic American singer-songwriter, tragically died in a plane crash on October 12, 1997. The small experimental aircraft he was piloting, an amateur-built Rutan Long-EZ, crashed into the Pacific Ocean near Pacific Grove, California. The crash occurred shortly after takeoff, and Denver, the sole occupant, did not survive. The exact cause of the crash was attributed to factors like fuel exhaustion and a loss of control during an attempted fuel switch.