Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash

1977 aviation accident in Mississippi, USA

Convair CV-240 N55VM crash

A Convair CV-240 similar to the accident aircraft

Accident
Date| October 20, 1977
18:52 (CST)[1]
Summary| Fuel exhaustion
Site| Heavily wooded swamp, Amite County, Mississippi, United States,
five miles (8 km) northeast
of Gillsburg
31°04′19″N 90°35′57″W﻿ / ﻿31.07194°N 90.59917°W﻿ / 31.07194; -90.59917[1]: 3
Aircraft
Aircraft type| Convair CV-240[2]
Operator| L & J Company of
Addison, Texas
Call sign| 5 VICTOR MIKE
Registration| N55VM
Flight origin| Greenville Downtown Airport, Greenville, South Carolina
Stopover| McComb-Pike County Airport, Pike County, Mississippi (emergency attempt)
Destination| Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Occupants| 26
Passengers| 24
Crew| 2
Fatalities| 6
Injuries| 20
Survivors| 20

crash site

Greenville

Baton Rouge

class=notpageimage|

The flight departed Greenville, South Carolina for Baton Rouge, Louisiana, ultimately crashing near Gillsburg, Mississippi

On October 20, 1977, a Convair CV-240 passenger aircraft ran out of fuel and crashed in a wooded area near Gillsburg, Mississippi, United States. Chartered by the rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd from L & J Company of Addison, Texas, it was flying from Greenville, South Carolina, to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, crashing near its destination.[3][4]

Lynyrd Skynyrd lead vocalist and founding member Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist and vocalist Steve Gaines, backing vocalist Cassie Gaines (Steve's older sister), assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, Captain Walter McCreary and First Officer William John Gray all died as a result of the crash, while twenty others survived.[5] The tragedy abruptly halted Lynyrd Skynyrd's career until Van Zant's brother Johnny reformed the band ten years later.

## Crash

[edit]

On October 19, 1977, two days after releasing their album Street Survivors, Lynyrd Skynyrd performed at the Greenville Memorial Auditorium in Greenville, South Carolina. The following day they boarded a Convair CV-240 airplane to take them to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where they were to perform at Louisiana State University. The plane ran out of fuel near the end of the flight.[2][6]

Upon realizing that the plane had insufficient fuel, the pilots attempted to navigate to McComb Airport, about 10 mi (16 km) northeast of the eventual crash site in Amite County, Mississippi, but soon realized that the plane would not make it. As a last resort, they attempted an emergency landing in an open field about 300 yd (270 m) from where the plane eventually went down.[7] Despite their efforts, at approximately 6:52 pm[1] the plane skimmed about 100 yd (90 m) along the top of the tree line before smashing into a large tree and splitting into pieces near Gillsburg, Mississippi.

Early in the flight, witnesses recall that lead vocalist Ronnie Van Zant was lying on the floor with a pillow, having been up most of the previous night and being in need of sleep. Several other passengers passed the time by playing cards. At some point the passengers became aware that something was wrong, and drummer Artimus Pyle recalled entering the flight deck and being told by the terrified captain, Walter McCreary, to go back and strap himself in. With the gravity of the situation clear, the passengers sat in silence, some praying.[8] Guitarist Gary Rossington recalled hearing what sounded like hundreds of baseball bats hitting the plane's fuselage as it began striking trees. The sound got louder and louder until Rossington was knocked unconscious; he awoke some time later on the ground with the plane's door on top of him.[9]

Keyboard player Billy Powell's nose was nearly torn off in the crash as he suffered severe facial lacerations and deep lacerations to his right leg. Decades later, he gave an account of the flight's final moments on a VH1 Behind the Music special, stating that Van Zant, who was not wearing a seat belt, was thrown violently from his seat and died immediately when his head hit a tree as the plane broke apart. Some elements of Powell's version of the events, however, have been disputed by both drummer Pyle and Van Zant's widow Judy Van Zant Jenness, who posted the autopsy reports on the band's web site in early 1998, while confirming other aspects of Powell's account.[10] Pyle suffered broken ribs but managed to leave the crash site and notify a nearby resident.[6]

Van Zant, guitarist/vocalist Steve Gaines, backing vocalist Cassie Gaines (Steve's sister), assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, Captain McCreary and First Officer William John Gray all died in the crash.[2][3][4] Most of the survivors had been seated toward the back of the plane.[7] The survivors, all of whom were seriously injured, were transported to different hospitals for treatment and were not immediately aware of the fatalities. Rossington, for instance, was not informed until days later by his mother in the hospital that Van Zant had been killed.[9]

Cassie Gaines had been so fearful of flying in the Convair that she had preferred to travel in the band's cramped equipment truck instead, but Van Zant convinced her to board the plane on October 20.[11] Another member of the band's trio of back-up singers (collectively known as the "Honkettes"), JoJo Billingsley, was not on the plane as she was under a doctor's care in Senatobia, Mississippi, dealing with health problems brought about by substance abuse.[12] Billingsley planned on re-joining the tour in Little Rock, Arkansas, on October 23.[13] She reported dreaming of the plane crash and begging guitarist and founding member Allen Collins by telephone not to continue using the Convair.[11] The band's ex-guitarist, Ed King, said later that he "always knew it wasn't gonna end well" for the band due to their penchant for drinking and brawling, but he could never have envisioned it ending the way it did, and recalls being overcome with sadness upon learning of the crash.[14]

Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1977

It was later discovered that the very same aircraft had earlier been inspected by members of Aerosmith's flight crew for possible use in their Draw the Line tour, but it was rejected because it was felt that neither the plane nor the crew were up to standard. Aerosmith's assistant chief of flight operations, Zunk Buker, told of observing pilots McCreary and Gray sharing a bottle of Jack Daniel's while he and his father inspected the plane.[15] Aerosmith's touring family were quite shaken after receiving word of the crash, as Steven Tyler and Joe Perry had pressured their management into renting that specific plane for use on their tour.[16]

The doomed flight of October 20, 1977, was intended to be the last Lynyrd Skynyrd would make on the Convair. "We were flying in a plane that looked like it belonged to the Clampett family," said Pyle, and the band had decided that their status as one of the world's top rock acts warranted an upgrade. The band had planned on acquiring a Learjet after arriving in Baton Rouge, to replace the 30-year-old plane, which all in the band's circle agreed was well past its prime.[17]

### Rescue

[edit]

Rescuers had to cross a 20-foot-wide (6 m), waist-deep creek and dig through an overgrown forest, while digging out rescue vehicles that got stuck in the mud.[18] Locals worked with rescue officials and drove victims to the hospital in the back of pick-up trucks. One local resident recalled, "I found someone on the ground alive. When I walked to the other side of the plane, I tripped on another person."[7] Another resident commended the actions of all those who helped, and highlighted that, "Some of them were out on that highway directing traffic. Some of them went home and got tractors. My wife was home on a CB radio. I'm relaying messages on CB to her, ten miles away."[7]

## Cause

[edit]

After the accident, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) removed, inspected, and tested the right engine's ignition magneto and found it to be operating normally, concluding, "No mechanical or electrical discrepancies were found during the examination of the right magneto."[1] The inspection also determined that, "All of the fuel cross-feed and fuel dump valves were in the closed position."[1]

Billy Powell, among others, spoke of seeing flames shooting out of the plane's right engine during a flight just days before the crash. The subsequent report by the NTSB listed "an engine malfunction of undetermined nature" in that same engine as a contributing factor in the crash.[1] Pyle told Howard Stern years later in an interview that the fuel gauge in the older-model plane was known to malfunction and the pilots had neglected to check the tanks manually before taking off. Toxicology reports from both pilots' autopsies found no traces of alcohol or other drugs.[1] "Crew inattention to fuel supply" was ultimately determined to be responsible for the crash.[1]

> The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of this accident was fuel exhaustion and total loss of power from both engines due to crew inattention to fuel supply. Contributing to the fuel exhaustion were inadequate flight planning and an engine malfunction of undetermined nature in the right engine that resulted in "torching" and higher-than-normal fuel consumption.

—NTSB Accident Report[1]

The accident report records that the aircraft was both owned and operated by L & J Company,[1] but the lease to Lynyrd Skynyrd's production company specified that Lynyrd Skynyrd was the operator[1] and therefore was responsible for regulatory compliance (including managing the flight crew).[1] The flight crew were employed by a third party,[1] and the lease period was three weeks.[1] The report records the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) as taking legal action against L & J Company in relation to the operator responsibility,[1] and the analysis section concludes by asking, "How does the system in such a case protect a lessee who is uninformed either by design, by inadvertence, or by his own carelessness?"[1]

## Legacy

[edit]

The crash took place three days following the release of the band’s fifth studio album Street Survivors. The album cover showed the band surrounded by flames. Following the plane crash, MCA replaced the image with a new cover, showing the band against a simple black background, which was on the back of the original sleeve.[19] The site of the crash has become a memorial for fans, rescuers and survivors, with an oak tree that has been carved with Lynyrd Skynyrd iconography, while the site was also the location of a fortieth anniversary memorial by survivors and rescuers.[7]

In 2017, surviving members of the band and family of those who died in the crash filed a lawsuit to block production and distribution of a film entitled Street Survivors: The True Story of the Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash. The dispute stemmed from a "blood oath" by survivors, reportedly taken after the crash, never to use the name Lynyrd Skynyrd again in an effort to capitalize on the tragedy that had befallen them.[20] The film premiered at the Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival on February 18, 2020.[21]

## See also

[edit]

* List of music group fatalities from aviation accidents

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Aircraft Accident Report – L & J Company, Convair 248, N55VM, Gillsburg, Mississippi, October 20, 1977" (PDF). National Transportation Safety Board. June 19, 1978. NTSB-AAR-78-06. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 7, 2020. Retrieved May 19, 2020. \- Copy at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
2. ^ a b c "Aircraft accident Convair CV-240 N55VM Gillsburg, MS". Aviation Safety Network. Flight Safety Foundation. June 19, 1978. Archived from the original on November 5, 2012. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
3. ^ a b Gwinn, John (October 22, 1977). "Why did plane run out of fuel?". Spartanburg Herald-Journal. (South Carolina). p. B1. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
4. ^ a b "Rock band leader, five others killed in charter plane crash". Eugene Register-Guard. (Oregon). UPI. October 21, 1977. p. 3A. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
5. ^ "Airplane crash kills members of rock band". The Bulletin. (Bend, Oregon). Associated Press. October 21, 1977. p. 8\. Archived from the original on August 12, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
6. ^ a b Adams, Pat; Cooper, Jaquelyn (October 20, 2017). "The Tragic Plane Crash that Happened on October 20, 1977 in Gillsburg Mississippi". TennesseeConcerts.com. Archived from the original on December 25, 2014. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
7. ^ a b c d e Vicory, Justin (October 21, 2017). "The night Lynyrd Skynyrd fell from the sky". The Clarion Ledger. Archived from the original on October 20, 2022. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
8. ^ Survivors of The Lynyrd Skynyrd Fatal Plane Crash on YouTube; 06:15; and 08:19; accessed May 2020
9. ^ a b If I Leave Here Tomorrow: A Film About Lynyrd Skynyrd, Passion Pictures, Directed by Stephen Kijak, 2018
10. ^ Brant 2002, p. 155.
11. ^ a b Brant 2002, p. 151.
12. ^ Brunot, Luc (2008). "JoJo Billingsley Lynyrd Skynyrd – Alias". sweethomemusic.fr. Archived from the original on October 28, 2019. Retrieved October 27, 2019.
13. ^ Brant 2002, p. 147.
14. ^ The Ray Shasho Show, BBS Radio 1 Network, 2016
15. ^ Davis 1997, p. 304.
16. ^ "Lynyrd Skynyrd's Plane Crashes in Rural Mississippi". Mississippi Memories. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved November 25, 2017.
17. ^ Runtagh, Jordan (October 20, 2017). "Remembering Lynyrd Skynyrd's Deadly 1977 Plane Crash". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 23, 2018. Retrieved October 27, 2017.
18. ^ "Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash was 35 years ago". NBC News. Archived from the original on August 24, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
19. ^ "The legacy of Lynyrd Skynyrd, 40 years after plane crash tragedy". Archived from the original on August 23, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
20. ^ "Lynyrd Skynyrd Members Head to Trial Over Plane Crash Movie". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on August 24, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
21. ^ "HRIFF 2020 Program Guide". hollywoodreelindependentfilmfestival.com. Archived from the original on March 21, 2020. Retrieved July 3, 2020.

## Further reading

[edit]

* Brant, Marley (2002). Freebirds: The Lynyrd Skynyrd Story. Billboard Books. ISBN 0-8230-8321-7. Retrieved October 18, 2008.
* Davis, Stephen (1997). Walk This Way: The Autobiography of Aerosmith. HarperCollins. ISBN 0-380-97594-7. Retrieved October 18, 2008.

## External links

[edit]

* Official Lynyrd Skynyrd website
* US NTSB Report on Plane Crash
* Check-Six.com – Lynyrd Skynyrd's Crash – includes full crew and passenger list
* Official Lynyrd Skynyrd History site

* v
* t
* e

Lynyrd Skynyrd

* Rickey Medlocke
* Johnny Van Zant
* Michael Cartellone
* Mark Matejka
* Peter Keys
* Keith Christopher

* Ronnie Van Zant
* Allen Collins
* Gary Rossington
* Bob Burns
* Larry Junstrom
* Greg T. Walker
* Leon Wilkeson
* Billy Powell
* Ed King
* Artimus Pyle
* Steve Gaines
* Randall Hall
* Kurt Custer
* Mike Estes
* Owen Hale
* Hughie Thomasson
* Jeff McAllister
* Kenny Aronoff
* Ean Evans
* Robert Kearns
* Johnny Colt

Studio albums|

* (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd)
* Second Helping
* Nuthin' Fancy
* Gimme Back My Bullets
* Street Survivors
* Lynyrd Skynyrd 1991
* The Last Rebel
* Endangered Species
* Twenty
* Edge of Forever
* Christmas Time Again
* Vicious Cycle
* God & Guns
* Last of a Dyin' Breed

Live albums|

* One More from the Road
* Southern by the Grace of God
* Lyve from Steel Town
* Lynyrd Skynyrd Lyve: The Vicious Cycle Tour
* Live from Freedom Hall
* Last of the Street Survivors Farewell Tour Lyve!

Compilations|

* Skynyrd's First and... Last
* Gold & Platinum
* Best of the Rest
* Legend
* Skynyrd's Innyrds
* Lynyrd Skynyrd (box set)
* A Retrospective
* What's Your Name
* Old Time Greats
* The Essential Lynyrd Skynyrd
* Skynyrd's First: The Complete Muscle Shoals Album
* 20th Century Masters: The Best of Lynyrd Skynyrd
* Solo Flytes
* All Time Greatest Hits
* Collectybles
* Then and Now
* Thyrty
* Then and Now Volume Two
* Greatest Hits
* Icon

Video|

* Freebird... The Movie
* Lyve from Steel Town
* Lynyrd Skynyrd Lyve: The Vicious Cycle Tour
* Live from Freedom Hall

Singles|

* "Gimme Three Steps" / "Mr. Banker"
* "Don't Ask Me No Questions" / "Take Your Time"
* "Sweet Home Alabama"
* "Free Bird"
* "Saturday Night Special"
* "Double Trouble"
* "What's Your Name"
* "That Smell"
* "Truck Drivin' Man"
* "You Got That Right"
* "Preacher Man"
* "Red White & Blue"

Other songs|

* "Need All My Friends"
* "Tuesday's Gone"
* "Simple Man"

Tours|

* Street Survivors Tour
* Lynyrd Skynyrd Tribute Tour
* Lynyrd Skynyrd 1991 Tour
* Edge of Forever Tour
* The Last of the Street Survivors Farewell Tour

Spin-off bands|

* Rossington Collins Band
* The Rossington Band
* Allen Collins Band
* Artimus Pyle Band
* Van Zant

Related articles|

* Discography
* Members
* Skynyrd Frynds
* Plane crash
* Ronnie Van Zant Memorial Park
* Leonard Skinner
* "All Summer Long"

* v
* t
* e

Aviation accidents and incidents in 1977 (1977)

Jan 5

Connellan air disaster

Jan 13

Aeroflot Flight 3843

Jan 13

Japan Air Lines Cargo Flight 1045

Jan 15

Linjeflyg Flight 618

Feb 15

Aeroflot Flight 5003

Mar 17

British Airtours Boeing 707 crash

Mar 27

Tenerife airport disaster

Apr 4

Southern Airways Flight 242

Apr 12

Delta Air Lines Flight 1080

Apr 27

Aviateca Convair 240 crash

May 7

Tavda mid-air collision

May 10

Israeli CH-53 crash

May 14

Dan-Air Boeing 707 crash

May 27

Aeroflot Flight 331

Jul 10

Aeroflot Tupolev Tu-134 hijacking

Jul 20

Aeroflot Flight B-2

Aug 1

Encino helicopter crash

Sep 21

Malév Flight 203

Sep 27

Japan Air Lines Flight 715

Sep 27

Yokohama F-4 crash

Sep 28

Japan Air Lines Flight 472

Oct 13

Lufthansa Flight 181

Oct 20

Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash

Nov 19

TAP Flight 425

Dec 2

Libyan Arab Airlines Tu-154 crash

Dec 4

Malaysian Airline System Flight 653

Dec 13

Air Indiana Flight 216

Dec 17

United Airlines Flight 2860

Dec 18

SA de Transport Aérien Flight 730

Dec 19

Vieques Air Link crash

1976  ◄ ► 1978

* v
* t
* e

Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States and U.S. territories in the 1970s

1970|

* Cornfield Bomber (February 1970)
* Eastern Air Lines Shuttle Flight 1320 (March 1970)
* ALM Flight 980 (May 1970)*
* Trans International Airlines Flight 863 (September 1970)
* Wichita State University football team plane crash (October 1970)
* Southern Airways Flight 932 (November 14 1970)
* Capitol International Airways Flight C2C3/26 (November 27 1970)

1971|

* B-52C Lake Michigan crash (January 1971)
* Colorado Aviation Aero Commander 680 crash (May 1971)
* Hughes Airwest Flight 706 (June 6 1971)
* Allegheny Airlines Flight 485 (June 7 1971)
* Pan Am Flight 845 (July 1971)
* Alaska Airlines Flight 1866 (September 1971)
* Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305 (See D. B. Cooper, November 1971)

1972|

* Mohawk Airlines Flight 405 (March 1972)
* Delta Air Lines Flight 9570 (May 1972)
* American Airlines Flight 96 (June 12 1972)
* Prinair Flight 191 (June 24 1972)*
* Lake Winnebago mid-air collision (June 29 1972)
* Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 710 (July 5 1972)
* Delta Air Lines Flight 841 (July 31 1972)
* Sacramento Canadair Sabre accident (September 1972)
* Southern Airways Flight 49 (November 1972)
* United Air Lines Flight 553 (December 10 1972)
* Chicago–O'Hare runway collision (December 20 1972)
* Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 (December 29 1972)
* Puerto Rico DC-7 crash (December 31 1972)*

1973|

* DeKalb–Peachtree Airport Learjet crash (February 1973)
* Ozark Air Lines Flight 809 (July 23 1973)
* Delta Air Lines Flight 723 (July 31 1973)
* TWA Flight 742 (August 1973)
* World Airways Flight 802 (September 8 1973)
* Texas International Airlines Flight 655 (September 27 1973)
* Pan Am Flight 160 (November 3 1973)
* National Airlines Flight 27 (November 3 1973)
* Iberia Flight 933 (December 1973)

1974|

* Commonwealth Commuter Flight 317 (January 6 1974)
* Pan Am Flight 806 (January 30 1974)*
* Delta Air Lines Flight 523 (February 1974)
* Eastern Air Lines Flight 212 (September 1974)
* TWA Flight 514 (December 1 1974)
* Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 6231 (December 1 1974)

1975|

* Golden West Airlines Flight 261 (Janaury 1975)
* Eastern Air Lines Flight 66 (June 1975)
* Wien Air Alaska Flight 99 (August 1975)
* Overseas National Airways Flight 032 (November 1975)

1976|

* Alaska Airlines Flight 60 (April 5 1976)
* American Airlines Flight 625 (April 27 1976)*
* Air Manila Flight 702 (June 1976)
* TWA Flight 355 (September 1976)

1977|

* Japan Air Lines Cargo Flight 1045 (January 1977)
* Southern Airways Flight 242 (April 4 1977)
* Delta Air Lines Flight 1080 (April 12 1977)
* Encino helicopter crash (August 1977)
* Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash (October 1977)
* Air Indiana Flight 216 (December 13 1977)
* United Airlines Flight 2860 (December 18 1977)
* Vieques Air Link crash (December 19 1977)*

1978|

* Continental Airlines Flight 603 (March 1 1978)
* United Airlines Flight 696 (March 13 1978)
* National Airlines Flight 193 (May 1978)
* Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 182 (September 25 1978)
* Air Caribbean Flight 309 (September 26 1978)*
* TWA Flight 541 (December 21 1978)
* United Airlines Flight 173 (December 28 1978)

1979|

* TWA Flight 841 (April 1979)
* American Airlines Flight 191 (May 25 1979)
* Downeast Airlines Flight 46 (May 30 1979)
* Air New England Flight 248 (June 17 1979)
* American Airlines Flight 293 (June 20 1979)
* American Airlines Flight 444 (November 1979)

This list is incomplete.
An asterisk (*) denotes an incident that either took place in a U.S. territory, or in adjacent waters thereof.
Flying Tiger Line Flight 45 (July 1970) occurred in the United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyu Islands

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