Be the first to get hottest news from our Editor-in-Chief, Check your email and confirm your subscription. Soon after the plane would begin to jerk and shake violently. The singer died in the arms of the surviving band's keyboardist Billy Powell. Terror soon engulfed the cabin of the plane and the pilots were frantically trying to radio local Houston Air Traffic Control, stating they had a fuel issue and were most likely going to have to make a emergency landing. Skip to main content. Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a2fad0cc830fa72 "Steve was at the peak of his career. Steve Gaines (1949-1977) - Find a Grave Memorial I knew I could take photographs if I could get there. As he looked around the scene, his mind went back. How did Cassie Gaines of the southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd die? - Yen Contributing to the fuel exhaustion were inadequate flight planning and an engine malfunction of undetermined nature in the engine which resulted in higher than normal fuel consumption.". Steve Gaines was killed instantly upon impact and his sister Cassie Gaines perished as well. I marked my calendar and made arrangements. July 30, 2001 -- Leon Wilkeson, bass player and founding member of Lynyrd Skynyrd, is dead at age 49. . Video of a barechested Pyle at the 1979 Volunteer Jam does not show evidence of a gunshot wound. Cassie was 29 years old at the time of death. He was more in the image I was pre-visualizing - one of an aging rocker. Two bulldozers were dispatched to plow a primitive path off nearby Highway 568 in order to give a ground path available to the first responders. Then on the other side, it was Allen in the middle of Dean and Cassie. Millions of high-quality images, video, and music options are waiting for you. The only thing left was a trail of debris and people. Wilkeson would play in both Rossington Collins Band and the Allen Collins band. While the site is duly remembered, it is on private property and is not open to the public. The pilots were still in their seats, but were laying upside down in nearby trees. It was there that he struck up a fractured conversation. In this video you will see the true story behind the tragic passing of Ronnie Van Zant, Cassie Gaines, Dean Kilpatrick, and Steve Gaines on October 20, 1977. We beat patterns into our dashboards drumming out the beat. Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash site draws a pilgrimage. Was there a guest book?". [2] Marc Frank was beaten terribly and was also covered in lacerations and blood. After claiming his deceased son, Lacy Van Zant went to visit the other members of the band at the hospital. Band members Artimus Pyle and Billy Powell entered the cockpit to get an idea of what was happening. Allen Collins, another guitar player for the group, had cracked two vertebrae, and the cut to his right arm was so severe, that it almost required amputation. 35 Years After Tragedy, Lynyrd Skynyrd Still Carries On - Rolling Stone Two of them were crew members, pilot Walter McReary and co-pilot William Gray, the rest were band members and roadies. The site is hard to access. As a member of the Civil Air Patrol on that fateful night, he heard the report of a plane crash over the citizens band radio. His luck, however, was on the short end of the stick as he would have his throat slit while on the Lynyrd Skynyrd tour bus in the early 90s. The sky is the limit for the talented actress. The fuselage turned sideways, and everybody was hurled forward.. Photo: obviousmag.org. Sit down. The plane had taken off with a faulty gasoline gauge that fooled the pilots into thinking that the plane was equipped with the appropriate amount of gas to reach their destination. His post noted that he and many others had made pilgrimages for years to the site to pay their respects. With the dust settled from a plane crash that would make a small Mississippi town famous, everything that surrounded the few conscious and able survivors were completely horrific and getting darker by the second. Collins recovered and began performing again, eventually forming the Allen Collins Band. The band buckled in. Ronnie Van Zant was just more than the bands main songwriter, frontman, and singer. What injuries did Cassie Gaines die from? Steven Earl Gaines (September 14, 1949 - October 20, 1977) was an American musician. Gene Odom had been thrown from the plane and broke his neck, his skin badly burned and one eye blinded by phosphorus from a de-icing flare that had been aboard. Easley knows he wasn't the first on the site, but he was there early. In addition to his fractured ribcage, Artimus Pyle was treated for numerous abrasions and contusions. That's when Mote connected the dots with the noise he had heard earlier. The tail section broke off, the cockpit broke off and buckled underneath, then both wings broke off. Members of the band that survived the crash said that Cassie actually . Aerosmiths band management at the time was looking at a Convair CV-240. Powells nose had been nearly ripped from his face after crashing head first through a table. He would eventually succumb to paralytic pneumonia while being treated in a hospital in 1990. Deceased people hanging from trees, the other survivors moaning for help of any kind, and completely surrounded by a black swamp whose canopy is blocking the only light that is trying so desperately to shine through. Losing daylight, the pilots desperately looked for an open field or some kind of saving grace. Pilot Walter McCrearey and co-pilot John Grey were killed on impact. Over the ridge, a World War II vintage Willis Jeep crawled down a dusty logging trail. His luck, however, was on the short end of the stick as he would have his throat slit while on the Lynyrd Skynyrd tour bus in the early 90s. We had to cross a black water slew," he said. A costly mistake at 9,000ft or so. Collect, curate and comment on your files. The years after the crash would be difficult in its own right for surviving members, most of which would experience tragedy and early death themselves. Powell's nose had been nearly ripped from his face after crashing head first through a table. 137.184.228.194 One of the three men was the band's drummer Artimus Pyle, who yelled, "Plane crash." Collins and other band members were severely injured. A tragic scene no person would ever wish to see or soon forget. Lynyrd Skynyrd Bassist Wilkeson Found Dead - ABC News Ronnies mother Marion refused to make the flight, after seeing a horrific plane crash of her own that killed 9 people. Cassie Gaines Birthday and Date of Death. Artimus Pyle emerged with several broken ribs, and bleeding everywhere you could. My college roommate was a young photojournalist. Cassie was buried in Orange Park, Florida, together with her brother, Steve Gains. Gene Odom, Lynyrd Skynyrds bodyguard, recalls: They took my watch, my wallet, my ring, and my money as I lay bleeding on the ground. Where Did We Find This Stuff? Last of the two surviving original member of the band, Gary Rossington, with Johnny Van Zant to his left and guitarist Rickey Medlocke to the right. Her mother passed away on 15th February 1979 in a car accident. Laying on the ground, still alive for only a moment, to slowly bleed to death. The band enjoyed national fame in the 1970s with such hits as Gimme Three Steps and Sweet Home Alabama.. Security manager Gene Odom was seriously burned on his arm and face and lost the sight in one eye as a result of an emergency flare on board the plane that was activated during the crash. From the commercial hits of Free Bird and Simple Man to less mainstream songs like The Needle And The Spoon and T Is For Texas, Lynyrd Skynyrd and their driving southern sound quickly cut their way to the top of the charts and into the hearts of many across the states and around the world. "May the free bird fly on," read one message. He had already finished a film about the plane crash when Gary and several others stepped in and placed a lawsuit against the film to not be shown to the public. At the end of the day, Ronnie and the boys are gone and we lost a rock n roll angel on October 20, 1977. All reality had been broken and none of the surviving members would ever be the same or view life the same again. Billy Powell, the bands keyboardist, received extensive facial lacerations and a broken right knee. Billy had taken too long on his intro to the song Free Bird and that didnt set well with Ronnie. Ronnie had died instantly upon impact, his head slamming into a tree. Varying accounts have Mote either firing a warning shot into the air or actually shooting Pyle in the shoulder no report is completely reliable. It would be another hour before I heard the big news. She died from excessive bleeding as her throat had been cut from ear to ear. 1977 Plane Crash | Lynyrd Skynyrd | Fandom Totaled, decimated, and left for dead. Lead vocalist and founding member of the southern rock band, Ronnie Van Zant, also lost his life in the accident. The flight was going good so far and other than Ronnie getting severely intoxicated while on the flight, all seemed to be setting up to be another routine flight. Photo: hu.wikipedia.com. Before joining the music band, she was an original cast member of a school play under Hairspray. It would take hours to remove the bodies of the dead and injured from the plane. With the tree tops approaching fast and just eight miles short of the air strip, the plane was headed for a Mississippi swamp and nothing could be done to save them now. The flight was going good so far and other than Ronnie getting severely intoxicated while on the flight, all seemed to be setting up to be another routine flight. A costly mistake at 9,000ft or so. Dean Kilpatrick, the bands manager, lay dead and covered in blood. You all just better get some rest. Dan Barnes recalls saying This man had just been to the funeral home and seen his son dead and decided to keep that to himself for these guys to heal. Laying on the ground, still alive for only a moment, to slowly bleed to death. The plane finally slammed into the earth, and Billy Powell recalls saying, We hit the trees at approximately 90 mph. It would take hours to remove the bodies of the dead and injured from the plane. Lynyrd Skynyrd stops for a shot in 1973. The three injured men hiked some distance from the crash site, through swampy woods, and finally flagged down farmer Johnny Mote, who had come to investigate. Mote fired a warning shot in the air. Especially with the song That Smell. My younger brother and I banged out "Freebird" on a cheap set of drums in our bedroom. Rescue vehicles on the ground found no direct path in sight. He rushed to his truck and headed in. There are just too few physical landmarks. Apparently, Artimus had been quoted saying that Ronnie got up, went to the back of the plane and gave him a hippy handshake but Gene was quite persistent on the fact that it was complete bull. But soon, the helicopters that were heard and seen previously were on the scene. It is possible that the damaged magneto fooled the pilots into creating an exceptionally rich fuel mixture, causing the Convair to run out of fuel. Artimus Pyle emerged with several broken ribs, and bleeding everywhere you could. Deceased people hanging from trees, the other survivors moaning for help of any kind, and completely surrounded by a black swamp whose canopy is blocking the only light that is trying so desperately to shine through. He, like me, was 21-years-old at the time. Road crew member Steve Lawler, who suffered severe contusions and facial lacerations, was taken to the hospital in a pickup with a camper top. "Why, yes I do," I said, thinking about my roots, my old buddies and the high school dances. Original cover for Street Survivors, 1977Notably, the third member of The Honkettes, JoJo Billingsley, was not on the plane and in fact was home tending to a family member's illness. He lifted one after another and shuffled them to others outside. With the dust settled from a plane crash that would make a small Mississippi town famous, everything that surrounded the few conscious and able survivors were completely horrific and getting darker by the second. In 1982 he would form the Allen Collins band but shortly after would wreck his new Ford Thunderbird, killing his then girlfriend and paralyzing Collins. I obviously didn't know what I was doing. From left to right: Allen Collins, Ronnie Van Zant, And Gary Rossington. Toxicology tests were also ordered to determine whether there were drugs in his system at the time. Lynyrd Skynyd: The NTSB Report - Angelfire His only help at that moment was his neighbor, Dwain Easley. His wife, Lola, and my wife grew up together. Cassie Gaines Lynard Skynyrd plane crash was one of the band's most challenging moments. Check your inbox to be the first to know the hottest news. Both Steve and Cassie Gaines were killed in the crash. I'm still not sure why. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) determined that the probable cause of this accident was fuel exhaustion and total loss of power from both engines due to crew inattention to the fuel supply. He had been hospitalized since September. Street Survivors was released just three days before the crash and would quickly become a hit. The tree where the cockpit came to rest has long-since died. The band would be marked for strife as just before their inaugural tour, Allens wife would bleed to death due to a miscarriage. As they, too, were succumbing to the sub-par standards of the plane and crew. Circa 1975, Singers Cassie Gaines , Leslie Hawkins and Jo Jo Billingsley of the American rock group, Lynyrd Skynyrd, 1970s. Ronnie Van Zant and Steve Gaines, along with backup singer Cassie Gaines (Steve's older sister), assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary, and co-pilot William Gray died. They were scheduled to perform at the Louisiana State University. The cockpit, tail, and wings completely ripped apart and the remaining cab lay desolate, in the shape of an L. The plane was simply not built well enough to even remotely handle the impact from the pine trees at roughly 90 mph. In an interview in the book Walk This Way, Aerosmith's assistant chief of flight operations Zunk Buker tells of seeing pilots McCreary and Gray trading a bottle of Jack Daniels back and forth while Buker and his father were inspecting the plane. But soon, the helicopters that were heard and seen previously were on the scene. Leon Wilkeson and Billy Powell would both go on to pursue other musical ventures and both have a hand in several Lynyrd Skynyrd re-boots. Without wanting to cause alarm he thought to himself that maybe the pilots were trying to transfer fuel from one engine to another. Lynyrd Skynyrd reformed in 1987, and has been touring and recording steadily ever since with Johnny Van Zant, brother of the late Ronnie, as lead singer. Victims were taken to the hospital in McComb, Mississippi by ambulances and other vehicles. On hearing of the accident, Billingsley was so shaken that some of her hair fell out. At the beginning of the flight, all was well, amid high tensions. I knew I had no business going, and my wife told me so. Van Zant, Steve and Cassie Gaines, Kilpatrick and the pilots were laid in a temporary morgue at a local high school gymnasium. With the tree tops approaching fast and just eight miles short of the air strip, the plane was headed for a Mississippi swamp and nothing could be done to save them now. The crash killed singer/songwriter Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist/vocalist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary and co-pilot William Gray. She was sick and would meet up with the band in Arkansas to continue the tour. Who died in the Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash? Pilots Walter McCreary and William Gray were fully aware of a fuel shortage before the flight took off. His only help at that moment was his neighbor, Dwain Easley. On October 20, 1977, a Convair CV-240 carrying the band between shows from Greenville, South Carolina to Baton Rouge, Louisiana crashed outside of Gillsburg, Mississippi. 5 spot, it was the bands first No. Suffocating the people on the bottom from the sheer weight. All of the seats were ripped from the frame of the plane, landing in the front section of the crash. Photo: Uncle Johns Bathroom Reader. Leon Wilkeson, their bass player, had arguably the most harrowing recovery; as he faced many internal injuries, dislodged teeth, and a broken left arm and leg, and his heart stopped twice on the operating table while doctors frantically struggled to keep him alive. Crying, praying, and counting the dead to see who they would never hug, play music with, and enjoy company with again. He then assembled a convoy of trucks and four-wheelers to locate the crash site and rescue the survivors. He suffered a heart attack . In the beginning, the singer was reluctant to board the aircraft and had already bought another commercial flight ticket. Throughout the ordeal, he remembers seeing the debris and suitcases scattered around, but he didn't think anything of it. A small plane with 40 seats and two props the plane was anything but extraordinary. Artimus Pyle, drummer for the band, stops for a quick picture while en route to the next show. Especially Artimus, who had three broken ribs and multiple large cuts. By then, a Coast Guard helicopter was hovering overhead. Lynyrd Skynyrd was known for their hard-rocking style, driven by powerful guitars. Cassie LaRue Hatfield Gaines (1926-1979) - Find a He knew those woods well. Governor said, "I'm bad about leaving an empty beer bottle and a full one for Ronnie and the boys" each year. What happened to the Menendez brothers' money? But not all had the intentions of lending a helping hand. As we walked, Easely pointed to a towering pine. Here Are Our Sources: Remembering Lynyrd Skynyrds Deadly 1977 Plane Crash, Jordan Runtagh, The Rolling Stones, What Happened To The Surviving Members Of The Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash?, Micheal Cristopher, Ultimate Classic Rock.com, Falling Free Bird: The Truth About The Infamous Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash Is Stranger Than Fiction, Phil Gibbons, Ranker.com, The Joplin Globe Steve and Cassie Gaines to be inducted into the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame. Brenda Martin, 17 at the time, lived with her husband, Johnny Mote (now divorced) in their mobile home on the north side of the crash site. But as my wife and I watched the news bulletins flash on TV, it was a big deal. The Vintage News Aerosmith Said No, Lynyrd Skynyrd Said Yes To The Plane. I had not realized before, but he also was there that night. The Vintage News Aerosmith Said No, Lynyrd Skynyrd Said Yes To The Plane. There is some speculation as to why the second engine had ultimately failed. Wilkeson would eventually be found dead in a hotel room in 2001 at age 49. Wilkeson would eventually be found dead in a hotel room in 2001 at age 49. Suffocating the people on the bottom from the sheer weight. "They seemed to be chasing him, trying to flag him down. Street Survivors became the band's second platinum album, and was the #5 top selling album on the U.S. album chart. The plane killed three band members (Ronnie Van Zant, Cassie, Steve Gaines) and Dean Kilpatrick (assistant road manager), Walter McCreary (pilot), and William Gray (co-pilot). Truth be known, after 38 years, Martin is a little tired of talking about the whole thing. Cassie joined the team and became one of the three members of The Honkette's, a female gospel vocal trio of Lynyrd Skynyrd. "Yes, your right," I said, slightly amused. Almost four decades later, I noticed a seemingly innocuous post on Facebook. He had known Easley Creek since his youth. It felt like being hit with baseball bats in a steel garbage can with the lid on. "I knew she was gone. The accident essentially destroyed one of the unique voices of American rock and roll. Home; Memorials; Cemeteries; Famous; Contribute; Register; Sign In; Register; Sign In; . He drove down from his home in Oakland, Miss. Powell also claimed that Ronnie Van Zant's head had been smashed. It was rumored that it was Ed Kings (original guitar player for Lynyrd Skynyrd) wife but it was not confirmed. These combinations of poorly built aircraft and less than acceptable crew quickly led to the dismissal of the band leasing out their services. With my camera at the ready, the translator and I stood watch on the prow of the brightly colored wooden boat as we plowed the exotic coastline. As the three marched on, feet soaking wet from the water, all odds seemed stacked against the trio. It Crashed, Killing 3 Members, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Drinking, Fighting, Hell-Raising: The Classic Skynyrd Lineup In Pittsburgh, Associate Press Mississippi Road Signs For Lynyrd Skynyrd Plane Crash Site, Hollywood Reporter Appeals Court Reverses Ban on Lynyrd Skynyrd Movie, Ronnie Van Zant Of Lynyrd Skynyrd Predicted His Own Death, Groove History, 1977 Missippi Convair CV-240 Plane Crash, Wikipedia, History Collection The Deadliest Plane Crash in Canada Killed 248 Soldiers in 1985, History Collection A Plane Crashed into the Empire State Building (1945). Ronnies mother Marion refused to make the flight, after seeing a horrific plane crash of her own that killed 9 people. It was Dr. Hank Lewis, a month shy of 78-years-old. It was Steve, and me, and Ronnie and I was in the middle of them. Lynyrd Skynyrd stops for a shot in 1973. We were shocked, as were most others hearing the news. For members Gary Rossington and Allen Collins, the weight of what happened seemed to push down on them the most. The Convair 240 itself had been inspected by members of Aerosmith's flight crew for possible use in the early summer of 1977, but was rejected because it was felt that neither the plane nor the crew were up to standards. Also Known As: Cassie LaRue Gaines Died At Age: 29 Family: mother: Cassie LaRue Gaines Died Young Rock Singers Died on: October 20, 1977 place of death: Gillsburg, Mississippi, United States U.S. State: Oklahoma Cause of Death: Plane Crash Recommended Lists: American Celebrities Film & Theater Personalities American Women Women Singers He was only 39, but was no rookie. However, other band members convinced her otherwise. I began the classic guitar lick. The rest of the group had no idea at the time that they would never see the face of Ronnie again. The only thing left was a trail of debris and people. The album would reach gold in ten days after release and it would eventually go double platinum. Cassie Gaines was a talented and committed backup singer for the Lynard Skynyrd music band until she died in a plane crash. And to Brenda's point, he's writing a book. The whole scene tore him apart. She was hesitant because she had seen a small fire in one of the engines the previous day. "Sweet Home Alabama" became the southern anthem for millions. 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