In the first part of this interview series with Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer Artimus Pyle, the 73-year-old recounted in graphic detail what happened on the doomed Convair airplane just before it. This is a list of the Crew and Passenger Manifest of the Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash. After all, many people are talking about them, sharing their music, buying their albums and mourning their passing. But less successful efforts eventually created dissension. The band's ambitious tour for their latest album had just started and they decided to lease a twin prop plane to reach each destination.. Thanks Lynyrd Skynyrd Monument Board. The tail section broke off, the cockpit broke off and buckled underneath, and both wings broke off. Oct. 20, 1977, crash that killed 3 came days after release of 'Street Survivor' album It was 45 years ago when a plane crash claimed the lives of Lynyrd Skynyrd lead singer Ronnie Van. Street Survivors, which had been released three days prior to the crash, ended up being Lynyrd Skynyrds most successful album and achieved double-platinum status. It seemed that life has not been kind to this talented group. FILE - This Oct. 20, 1977 file photo shows the wreckage of a plane in a wooded area near McComb, Miss., where six people were killed, including three members of . Their decision to switch planes came one trip too late. Leon Wilkeson was trapped inside the cabin, and Powell heard him yell, Get me out of here!. The site has drawn visitors over the years. Lynyrd Skynyrd rose to fame in the early 1970s with songs like Free Bird and Sweet Home Alabama. The band was made up of several members, including guitarists Gary Rossington, Allen Collins and Leon Wilkeson, drummer Artimus Pyle, keyboardist Billy Powell, and lead singer Ronnie Van Zant. I saw the plane smack the ground.. How to Keep Kids Safe Using HughesNet Internet, The Surprising Benefits of HughesNet Satellite Internet, The Top Reasons to Get an Amazon Prime Video Subscription, How to Watch Your Prime Video Subscription on the Go, AT&T Plans: The Pros and Cons of AT&T Internet, Top Reasons to Switch to AT&T From Another Carrier. When vandals broke into Van Zant's tomb in 2000, it was theorized that the motive was to determine if the dead singer was, as rumoured, entombed in a Neil Young shirt. Wall saw one of the pilots, hanging from the interior of the cockpit, clearly dead. You've successfully subscribed to this newsletter! In shock and bleeding heavily from his severely damaged nose, he soon heard shouts for help from the others. However, now on the ground and in the trees, it was quite dark. Both were killed when the band's plane crashed on Oct. 20, 1977. Several passengers were killed, including the charismatic front man and founder, Ronnie Van Zant. What caused Lynyrd Skynyrd's plane to crash? Roadies, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and the pilot and co-pilot boarded the plane that took off just after 5 p.m. That was good for those who survived, but bad for those trying to help. Survivor Billy Powell later reported that everyone was simply relaxing and hanging out when the worrisome news came. He needed quintuple bypass surgery after being diagnosed with coronary artery disease, and he had already suffered multiple heart attacks. Odom grew up with Van Zant and other founding members of the band in Jacksonville, Florida. Fans of Lynyrd Skynyrd havent forgotten about the tragedy or where it took place. Ronnie was the only one of my children who had second sight, his father used to brag. One minute he could hear the planes engines, the next just air passing over the aircraft. It wasn't the first, or the last, time that a set of multi-talented musicians died aboard a plane. Thu 20th Oct 2022 01.00 BST. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Pyle and his father shared a love of planes, so it seems like more than a terrible coincidence that they both suffered flight-related crashes. Crash. Lynyrd Skynyrd remains one of the biggest acts in music history and is arguably the top American rock band of all time. Gary Rossington remains the last living founding member of Lynyrd Skynyrd Artimus Pyle didnt join the band until a few years later but that hasnt stopped him from performing. Burns's death brings to mind similar tragedies that have taken other former Lynyrd Skynyrd bandmates most notably the 1977 chartered plane crash in a Mississippi swamp that killed three . Legal Statement. Perhaps hes still sitting on that cloud log waiting for his family and the rest of his bandmates to join him, singing Sweet Home Alabama (carry me home to see my kin) while he casts his fishing line underneath where the skies are so blue.. If you travel to Gillsburg, Mississippi, today to visit the site of the crash, you will see various homages to the band. On their flight to Greenville coming from Florida, the plane managed to get into the air, but barely. The pilots were desperately looking for some open area or farmland to try to bring the plane down as safely as possible as they were still eight miles from the airport. Still, Mote was not sure what he was dealing with as he and other neighbours remained skeptical of the bloody individuals on his front porch. })(); The Crew and Passenger Manifest of the Final Flight of N55VM, Copyright 2002 Check SixThis page last updated Tuesday, July 10, 2012. Six people died;. Three members of the best southern rock band in history perished in a plane crash. Following is the report on the Lynyrd Skynyrd crash, 20 October 1977. Exactly 45 years ago today, on October 20, 1977, a chartered twin-engine Convair CV-240 crashed in a wooded area close to Gillsburg, Mississippi, killing six of the 24 passengers and crew. Because of the lack of fuel in the engines, there were no explosions or fires. The music industry and fans of southern rock were devastated. The aircraft's interior was jammed with equipment, instruments, and luggage. A judge upheld the consent order, and the movie was put on hold to Pyles dismay. Lynyrd Skynyrd was no exception to this pattern of behavior. He then made his way outside and confronted the three men with a shot in the air (Pyle said the shot grazed his shoulder, a claim that was later been rebuked). The plane eventually leveled out at 12,000 feet and after several minutes, the fire extinguished. GILLSBURG, Miss. Their farewell tour starts in May S Stephanie Piercy Southern Life Greenville South Carolina Greenville Sc Greenville, SC October 19, 1977 photo cred: Marc Frank L Larry Underhill A fan-made metal sign also stands in the area and lights up in neon colors. One other band had already rejected the plane before Lynyrd Skynyrd. The pilots radioed Houston at 6:42 PM. Plane crash survivors and rescuers met in rural Mississippi on Sunday. The Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash took the lives of Van Zant; guitarist Steve Gaines; his sister, backup singer Cassie Gaines; and assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick as well as pilot. Leon Wilkeson died in 2001 in his hotel room, presumably from natural causes, and Billy Powell passed away from a heart attack in 2009. Wilkeson said, Ronnie told me, Boy, get yourself out of here, its not your time yet, get on out of here.. Welcome to Autopsyfiles.org - Home Page - Autopsy Reports of . As the men came closer, Mote initially fired a warning shot until he heard Pyle yell, "Plane crash!". He was able to orient himself and set off towards what he thought was a local farm. Legal Statement. (function() { A horrific plane crash took the lives of members of Lynyrd Skynyrd, their road crew and both the pilot and co-pilot on Oct. 20, 1977, irrevocably altering the course of the Southern rock. They've put out . He said one of the things they discussed was switching their plane to a Learjet for upcoming flights. After surviving the plane crash that killed several of his bandmates, the drummer for Lynyrd . The band is from the Deep South (Van Zant hailed from Jacksonville, Florida) and short hops were the norm for them. "Sweet Home Alabama," one of the band's signature songs, an ode to "the Southland," boasts nearly 1 billion plays on Spotify, nearly 50 years after it was recorded in 1974. Several passengers were killed, including the charismatic front man and founder, Ronnie Van Zant. The plane was twisted in pieces, the front part upside down. It was a dire situation for even the most optimistic. Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer and plane crash survivor Artimus Pyle. how to cook rising tide salmon . The horror was far from over. Van Zant was certainly a worker and was devoted to his fans, especially in the South. In a book he wrote later he revealed that he said, Snake, I will bite your head off.. While the Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash is a story most people know about, certain details remain largely unknown. And then it happened. This explanation did little to console family, friends and fans of the deceased band members. Visiting Gillsburg Mississippi to the location where the band Lynyrd Skynyrd crashed on the way to a concert in Baton Rouge. At the insistence of Gainess wife, the album cover was changed because it morbidly depicted Gaines and other band members engulfed in flames. In the warm early evening of October 20, 1977, a chartered twin-engine prop plane carrying members and crew of the popular musical group Lynyrd Skynyrd crashed in the forest near this marker. Judy Van Zant, the widow of Lynyrd Skynyrd's lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, led the unveiling of a seven-ton granite monument to the six who died and 20 injured in the crash of the band's charter. Ronnie Van Zant routinely wore Neil Young shirts during live performances and even sported one on the cover of Street Survivors. Six individuals lost their lives in the October 20, 1977 plane crash including founding member and lead vocalist Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, backup singer Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary, and co-pilot William Gray Jr. Lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, Steve's sister and back-up singer, Cassie Gaines, and road manager Dean Kilpatrick all perished in the crash, along with pilot and co-pilot. The crash of the small Convair CV-240 passenger plane also claimed the lives of assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary and co-pilot William Gray. The group was coached on how to prepare for impact. With the songs from the first six Skynyrd albums driving the narration, the film focuses on the story of frontman Ronnie Van Zant - his upbringing, his roots, his work ethic and his c. Read all Director Stephen Kijak Writer Stephen Kijak Stars Lynyrd Skynyrd Ronnie Van Zant (archive footage) Gary Rossington You cant even realize, he said, exactly what a crash of this magnitude looks like. The aftermath of this tragedy wasnt easy to behold for anyone. They were almost 10,000 feet in the air and both engines were out. In other words, they knew the plane wasnt in great condition and didnt plan on using it anymore. The bands security manager, a man named Greg Odom, claimed he rushed the cockpit and yelled to the pilots, I hope you two sons of bitches live through this, so I can kill both of you! And as for Van Zant, some reports say he sat quietly, while Pyle claims he shook his hand before walking past him to his seat. For Lynyrd Skynyrd, 1977 was both the best and worst of times. The Truth About The Infamous Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash Is Stranger Than Fiction Tragedy struck Lynryd Skynyrd just three days after the group released its fifth album and was seemingly on the brink of unprecedented popular acclaim. He also survived a murder attempt in the 90s when an unknown perpetrator slit his throat. Despite the controversy sparked by the first film attempt, a 2018 documentary called Lynyrd Skynyrd: If I Leave Here Tomorrow was released, with the cooperation of Gary Rossington (pictured right). There were 26 people in all, and the ride started much better than the previous flight. The Lynyrd Skynyrd Monument was Unveiled October 20, 2019 with help from the VanZant and Gains families. Roadies, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and the pilot and co-pilot boarded the plane that took off just after 5 p.m. Lynyrd Skynyrd chartered the plane. With steering capabilities greatly diminished and no propulsion, the pilots still decided to execute a turn. To attempt this, Marc Frank said the pilots made a frightening 180-degree turn with both wings perpendicular to the ground. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, It was propelled by the weirdly prescient and dark "That Smell," a song that includes the lyric, "The smell of death surrounds you!". Mote made the connection between the sounds and the injured men. Kerry J. Byrne is a lifestyle reporter with Fox News Digital. The death of Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, and his sister Cassie Gains, along with the aftermath of the tragedy, essentially destroyed one of the most unique voices of American rock and roll. He became the headliner of the Artimus Pyle Band and rocked with them until he joined the revival of Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1987. Ronnie Van Zant slept on the floor in the rear aisle. They were told that they had passed the airstrip at McComb and would have to try to turn the plane around. The band's signature tune, "Free Bird," from Lynyrd Skynyrd's debut 1973 album, is a rock epic. This project was meant to pay respect to and memorialize the memories of those who were lost in the crash. It was only two-and-a-half hours later, however, that the pilot radioed the control center and said, Were low on fuel, and were just about out of it. They quickly organized to land at the nearest Mississippi airport, but the pilots soon reported that they were already out of fuel. Lynyrd Skynyrd, a band created in 1964 in Jacksonville, Florida by Ronnie Van Zant as singer, Gary Rossington and Allen Collins as guitarists, Larry Junstrom on bass and Bob Burns on drums, became over time with the Allman Brothers Band that embodied by definition a whole language, a musical style and a whole . (The original airliner's cabin was designed to carry up to 40 passengers, but this charter aircraft was equipped with tables and couches that cut into that number pretty significantly.) The plane they chose for this tour was a 1948 Convair 240. Known as "Papa Ronnie" when sober, he was a thoughtful, patriarchal influence who had held the band together through earlier, leaner times. Join us as we visit the Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash site in Galesburg, Mississippi.#lynyrdskynyrd #freebird #grimmlifecollective Want a personalized VIDEO MES. He was with them for four years before quitting, citing legal troubles with Van Zandts wife Judy as his reason for leaving. When celebrities abruptly pass away, their name and product normally undergo a bump in popularity. Many of the injuries required extended hospitalization and grueling rehabilitation. (Photo by Tom Hill/WireImage). The Convair jerked suddenly and before anyone knew it, the plane was a full 90 degrees sideways with wings fully perpendicular to the ground. $500.00. ron pexa cedar rapids, iowa. Even once the touring stops, their songs will still live on forever. But the plane took off without a problem, and two and a half hours transpired without incident. Loving messages have been left there in tribute to those who passed. They had all suffered extreme injuries that took time to heal, not to mention the time they needed to recover from the mental trauma of what they had experienced. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER. var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); The pilots radioed to ground control units and found out they were too far from any airport to reasonably make an emergency landing on a runway. He did as instructed and woke up Van Zant in the back of the plane. During the infamous 1975 "Torture Tour," a 90-day, 61-date enterprise, lead guitarist Ed King decided that he had had enough. Most reluctant of all, backup singer Cassie Gaines cancelled her plane reservation and also got on, not wanting to desert her brother, guitarist Steve Gaines. Visiting Gillsburg Mississippi to the location where the band Lynyrd Skynyrd crashed on the way to a concert in Baton Rouge. At 04:30 on October 18, 1977. Although it was popularly believed, especially in the Deep South, that Ronnie Van Zant harboured hostility towards Neil Young, the song was actually more complex than it appeared. Several surviving band members expressed their fears that night. This proved only a momentary reprieve for many of the survivors. As much as he loves performing, he loves being alive more. Instead of mourning a tragedy, fans love to celebrate the legacy. Free shipping on many items | Browse your favorite brands | affordable prices. Everyone else on the plane suffered serious injuries. 0:57. _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); Plane with Lynyrd Skynyrd onboard crashes in Mississippi on Oct. 20, 1977. The auto-lean setting is the standard for cruising in most cases. It was a substantially reduced price, and the savings were hard to justify when Rudge skipped the flight by opting for a first-class ticket on a commercial airliner. Any feelings that they were going to make it quickly went away. They loved guitars like their musical brethren (and idols) the Allman Brothers Band, boasting three powerhouse players. Guitarist Allen Collins lost his wife due to her pregnancy complications four years later, then was paralyzed in a car crash and later died of pneumonia. As for Van Zant, he was brought to his home and put to rest in Jacksonville, Florida. 1977 marked the release of Lynyrd Skynyrd's fifth album, Street Survivors. Lynyrd Skynyrd, one of the greatest Southern rock bands of all time, recently announced that it's extending its farewell tour, with shows in 25 additional cities between late April and late . "He was going to be a star, a rose that never got to bloom," said Odom. Previously, they were fond of chartering flights in nicer planes, but word soon got out that transporting them in the air was a nightmare for pilots and crew. Lynyrd Skynyrd , American rock band that rose to prominence during the Southern rock boom of the 1970s on the strength of its triple-guitar attack and gritty working-class attitude. Prior to Lynyrd Skynyrd leasing their twin prop, a Convair CV-240, Aerosmith was also interested in the same plane. Even so, it took forty-five minutes to reach the property of farmer Johnny Mote and make contact, a process that didn't initially go well. Lynyrd Skynyrd may have been from the South, but their fans hailed from all over the country. They discovered that the fuel had definitely run out, and the pilots had failed to correctly monitor their fuel use throughout the flight. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Equipped with this ancient tool, Wall did his best to locate survivors. / 31.07194N 90.59917W / 31.07194; -90.59917. And then silence. View complete answer on wlbt.com. Lynyrd Skynyrd is considered to have one of the most gruesome band histories because they lost several people in the aerial accident. It traveled a total of 495 feet after hitting the first tree. He was 29 years old. King was eventually replaced by Steve Gaines, one of the two band members killed on October 20, 1977. They eventually settled on the name Lynyrd Skynyrd after a high school gym teacher but the name wasnt an honorary tribute. The Crew and Passenger Manifest of the Final Flight of N55VM . Three musicians from the iconic American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, plus three other people, were killed in a terrifying plane crash on the Louisiana-Mississippi border on this day in. The aircraft was now just a few hundred feet above the ground. In an interview years later she said: That night I had the most vivid dream. The carnage of the wreckage was a horrific scene involving twisted metal and fragile human tissue (heads up: this next part is quite bad). Eventually, he would be joined by hundreds of people who helped pull survivors out of the plane and walked or stretchered them through creeks and swamp to ambulances as much as a mile away. They still didnt know the details of who survived, who didnt, or what injuries were suffered, so they waited anxiously for more news to emerge. It wasnt until the evening and the following morning that official news was released about the Lynyrd Skynyrd fatal plane crash. Allen Collins's wife died from complications during a pregnancy in 1981. The seats were torn apart, objects flew around and slammed into people, and the top of the plane came off, sending people and objects flying out. Everyone took one look at the Convair CV-240 and were concerned, to say the least. When I heard that there had been a plane crash, I just knew Ronnie was one of the ones that didnt make it, said Van Zants wife Judy some years after the crash. A pilot, co-pilot, and twenty four total passengers clambered onto the forty-seat prop plane. var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; Although the plane landed safely, following the concert, several members of the band and crew told lead vocalist Ronnie Van Zant that they would not continue the tour unless the plane was replaced. They ere living fast and hard. Help would take a while. Lets go, man. On his own and with new band members, he has continued to make music and tour the country, but these performances wont last forever. Tragedy followed them like a ghost. So there was no fire," said Odom. It crashed, killing 3 members Aug 26, 2017 Stefan Andrews It is hard to pick the saddest date when it comes to music history. Their southern rock sound influenced many artists that followed, and their song Free Bird is still requested at concerts. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. More recently, he tried to help produce a documentary about the band, but a judge put the kibosh on that because he didnt adhere to a 1987 agreement that required him to include at least three original band members in the project. It was heard in the movie "Forrest Gump" while a video of the band performing the song in Oakland in July 1977 has generated tens of millions of plays on YouTube. (Photo by Ed Perlstein/Redferns). Steve Gaines died on impact, and his sister Cassie was thrown from the plane and died shortly after the crash. The original core of Lynyrd SkynyrdRonnie Van Zant, Bob Burns, Gary Rossington, Allen Collins and Larry Junstromfirst came together under the name "My . "It took from me a lifelong dear friend and fishing buddy.". One of the band members said the trees sounded like a thousand baseball bats smacking the metal hull. More than four decades after the fateful crash that ended Lynyrd Skynyrds quickly rising music career, people still listen to their legendary hits. Scuba Certification; Private Scuba Lessons; Scuba Refresher for Certified Divers; Try Scuba Diving; Enriched Air Diver (Nitrox) The survivors . Weve got a gig to do.. The band's aircraft was flying to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, from Greenville, South Carolina, where Van Zant closed the show with "Free Bird.". Pilots Walter McCreary and William Gray were already aware of a fuel issue and there is speculation that they were attempting to transfer oil from one engine to the other but instead mistakenly jettisoned whatever remaining fuel they had, causing the left engine to also shut off, a major issue at 9,000 feet in the air. Chartered by the rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd from L & J . Planes Are Absolutely Not Allowed to Fly Here, Who Will Live Forever: The Incredible Story of Freddie Mercury, Viola Davis Barrier-Breaking Hollywood Story Is One for the Record Books. Several band members said Van Zant was very calm, and even a little annoyed that he had been woken up. 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. Listed here are the facts behind the infamous plane crash that ended Lynyrd Skynyrd. The three men hit the dirt and started yelling that they werent trying to hurt to him but had just been in a plane crash. _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-16729709-1']); These changes would have been implemented in the coming weeks, but they sadly never got the chance. You might think panic would prevail in this type of situation, but the musicians reacted in the opposite manner. Judy Van Zant-Jenness, widow of Lynyrd Skynyrd lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, among speakers. It felt like being hit with baseball bats in a steel garbage can with the lid on. Soaked in blood with long hair and screaming, Mote assumed that the men were up to no good and might even be escaped convicts. Ronnie Van Zants wife (pictured) decided in 2019 that she wanted to create a more permanent monument to her husband and the other people who died that day. I saw them screaming and crying, and I saw fire. As you can imagine, fans were overjoyed. Some of the passengers played a poker game in the back, and the shenanigans were on (the game got heated when one of the players tore the table off the wall). Twenty others survived the crash. Later, Pyle would claim that Johnny Mote actually shot him in the shoulder with his warning shot, but Mote denied this ever happened and subsequent photos show no evidence of the scars that would have ensued from this type of injury. Legendary band rocks the 2018 All-American Summer stage. Young, old and every age in between has found something to relate to in the bands profound sound. Years later he claimed he was sitting on a cloud-shaped log with Van Zant and another musician who had died six years earlier. LYNYRD SKYNYRD Rock Band 22" X 34" THE ROAD . These events had led him to believe that the band was headed for some form of apocalyptic end. On October 20, 1977, a plane crash killed three members of the group, including its guiding light, Ronnie Van Zant . Those whom died in the crash: Flight Crew: Walter McCreary, pilot: William Gray, co-pilot: Those associated with Lynyrd Skynyrd: Ronnie Van Zant, singer/songwriter : Steve Gaines, guitarist/vocalist : Cassie Gaines, vocalist: Dean Kilpatrick, assistant road manager . He said he could hear bassist Leon Wilkeson screaming, Get me out of here!, Pyle thought he spotted a farm from the air, and with both Frank and Peden, he took off in that direction to look for help. Powell remembers hitting a table mid-crash until the plane finally slowed to a stop in the middle of the swampy Mississippi woods. Lynyrd Skynyrd performs 'Sweet Home Alabama'. The rock and roll lifestyle includes its share of crazy stories, and Lynyrd Skynyrd was no different. Eerily, legendary rock group Aerosmith had representatives looking to buy the very Convair that carried Lynyrd Skynyrd to their demise. plane crash. The Last of the Street Survivors Farewell Tour is set to begin in March of 2020. Van Zant uncharacteristically allowed Ed King to be included in the song credits for "Sweet Home Alabama." The whistling wind was all they heard, making it no secret to the passengers what happened to the engines. Death hovered over the group like the movie Final Destination and made the song That Smell and its lyrics even more eerie, prophetic, and popular: the smell of death surrounds you!. By Dave Ling. Then suddenly, the engine stopped and the plane began to jolt violently in the air. Aerosmith said 'No,' Lynyrd Skynyrd said 'Yes' to the plane. Road Manager Dean Kilpatrick lay dead in the swamp. The plane kept on flying, and to everyones relief, it made it to Greenville. They requested landing vectors for the nearest airport, a tiny airstrip in McComb, Mississippi. The pilots were able to level the planes wings and for 10 long minutes, they glided through the air as the plane slowly descended toward earth. The original image was moved to the back. The band has toured for decades with Johnny Van Zant, the founder's younger brother, on lead vocals. Backup vocalist Cassie Gaines even made a reservation on a commercial flight to the next tour stop, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It was released only three days before the October 20th crash and featured some of the band's best material. He could hear his fellow passengers quietly praying. Many hope to finally see this film come to fruition someday. The pilots struggled to keep the plane level, and they were at a high risk of going into a spiral. He had dislodged teeth, a broken arm, a broken leg and severe internal injuries. After the band suffered a tragic plane crash, the cover of their most recent album, Street Survivors, took on an ominous feel. a twin engine, 40-passenger plane that was down in heavy woods near Gillsburg. Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1976 (L-R Leon Wilkeson, Billy Powell, Gary Rossington, Ronnie Van Zant and Allen Collins). Was the crash really a simple malfunction, or was it something that could have been avoided? Listen to Sweet Home Alabama, Free Bird and more from Lynyrd Skynyrd. The band formed in 1964 and settled upon the name Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1966. His gift came out in his music too, as his lyrics and style took a dark turn toward the end as well. He attempted to revive the Artimus Pyle Band, but he found himself in hot water with attempted capital battery among other serious charges in 1992. There were 26 people in all, and the ride started much better than the previous flight. Casey Gaines, the back-up singer and sister of Steve, actually hid in the back of their equipment truck until she was persuaded to get on the plane. It was only after Odom got out of the hospital that he learned Van Zant and the others were dead. Billy Powell remembers: "We hit the trees at approximately 90 mph. Several times in the dark, he tripped over human beings who were still alive and used a hatchet to chop away debris and remove survivors from the wreckage.