Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash
A Convair CV-240 similar to the accident aircraft | |
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | October 20, 1977 18:52 (CST) |
| 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: 3 |
| Aircraft | |
| Aircraft type | Convair CV-240 |
| Operator | L & J Company of Addison, Texas |
| Call sign | 5 VICTOR MIKE |
| Registration | N55VM |
| Flight origin | Louisville, Kentucky (Freedom Hall) |
| 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 |
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.
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. The tragedy abruptly halted Lynyrd Skynyrd's career until Van Zant's brother Johnny reformed the band ten years later.