Out of respect for the band and their family members, MCA recalled the album's original cover, which depicted the band members engulfed in flames.ĭevastated by the loss of their singer and the injuries sustained by the survivors, Lynyrd Skynyrd disbanded after the accident, leaving the survivors to try to make their own way with varying degrees of success and failure. Drummer Artimus Pyle and two crew members crawled from the wreckage and hiked through swampy woods until they finally flagged down a local farmer, who sent for help.įollowing the crash and the press attention that came along with it, Street Survivors became Lynyrd Skynyrd's second platinum album.

Skynyrd singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve Gaines, vocalist Cassie Gaines, assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary and co-pilot William Gray were killed instantly, while the other band members and road crew suffered terrible injuries. The pilots attempted to land on a small air strip, but the bottom of the plane clipped some trees, and the aircraft went down in a remote stand of forest. Lynyrd Skynyrd were traveling from Greenville, S.C., to Baton Rouge, La., when their plane apparently ran out of fuel toward the end of the flight. Rock legend has it that Aerosmith had looked into renting the same plane earlier in the year, but passed on it due to concerns over both the safety of the plane, and the readiness of its crew.

Who died in lynyrd skynyrd plane crash