Lynyrd skynyrd plane crash

Rescue vehicles on the ground found no direct path in sight. Tangled by underbrush and the foot creek, the rescue team had to act and think fast. Two bulldozers were dispatched to plow a primitive path off nearby Highway in order to give a ground path available to the first responders. It would take hours to remove the bodies of the dead and injured from the plane. Identification was completely hindered as there had been a poker game going on during the flight, and everyone’s wallets and purses had been strewn throughout the swamp. News had spread about the crash and before too long an estimated 3, people had swarmed to the crash site. But not all had the intentions of lending a helping hand.

In the ensuing chaos, souvenir hunters took billfolds, jewelry, suitcases, band merchandise and even chunks of metal from the crash site. Gene Odom, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s bodyguard, recalls: “They took my watch, my wallet, my ring, and my money as I lay bleeding on the ground. I would like to think that only one ‘grave robber’ was involved, but so many items were missing that I have to believe otherwise.” It was as if they were back in Noah’s time and all but a select few were stricken with greed of mankind and the chance to capitalize on an easy opportunity. Most of the 20 survivors were taken to Southwest Regional Medical Center in McComb, where the lobby had been transformed into a makeshift emergency treatment center to quickly deal with the onslaught of plane crash victims.

The Aftermath And The Battle With Survivor’s Remorse

Gary Rossington, one of the band’s guitar players, had suffered two broken arms, a broken leg, a punctured stomach and liver. 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. Billy Powell, the band’s keyboardist, received extensive facial lacerations and a broken right knee. In addition to his fractured ribcage, Artimus Pyle was t

aviation accident in Mississippi, USA

On October 20, , a Convair CV 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.

Crash

On October 19, , 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 airplane to take them to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where they were to perform at Louisiana State Un

October 20th will mark the 47th anniversary of the plane crash of Southern rock icons Lynyrd Skynyrd.

"Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird" are Lynyrd Skynyrd's most notable songs. Here are other things to know about Lynyrd Skynyrd and the crash:

How Lynyrd Skynyrd got its name

At least not entirely, though many think gym teacher Leonard Skinner was the inspiration for the band's name. Their decision was confirmed when they noticed a lyric from folk song satirist Allan Sherman’s early s hit, “Hello Muddah, Hello Fadda” (“You remember Leonard Skinner? / He got ptomaine poisoning last night after dinner.”)

Van Zant’s nickname foreshadowed his death

Van Zant’s friends called him the Mississippi Kid. When asked why, he always replied that he had no idea. He eventually would lose his life in Mississippi when the band’s plane plunged into thick forest outside Gillsburg.

For I must be traveling on now

The band had charted a propeller-driven Convair to travel from Greenville, South Carolina to Baton Rouge, Louisiana to play a concert at Louisiana State University, according to The (McComb) Enterprise Journal. According to reports, the plane ran out of fuel and the pilot was forced to make an emergency landing.

The crash killed six people, including Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines and Steve's sister, backup singer Cassie Gaines. Pilot Walter Wiley McCreary and co-pilot William John Gray, both of Dallas, and the band's assistant road manager, Dean Kilpatric, died as well. Twenty others on the plane were injured.

Things just couldn't be the same

After the crash, the band went on a year hiatus. In  they reunited for a world tour with Ronnie Van Zant's brother, Johnny, taking over on lead vocals. Lynyrd Skynyrd was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in  and continues to tour. Guitarist Gary Rossington was the last founding member of the band. Rossington died in  He was