- At the age of 71, Gary Rossington, the final surviving guitarist from the Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash incident, has passed away.
- Three musicians of the iconic American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd along with three other passengers lost their lives in a tragic plane crash on the Louisiana-Mississippi border on October 20, 1977.
- Gary managed to survive the Louisiana-Mississippi border plane crash in 1977, which claimed the lives of his three bandmates.
- While the cause of death was not disclosed, the guitarist had been struggling with various heart health issues, including an emergency open-heart surgery in 2021 during the band’s Big Wheels Keep on Turning Tour.
- The sad news of Gary Rossington’s passing was announced on Sunday evening, March 5, 2023, by Lynyrd Skynyrd’s official Facebook page.
At the age of 71, Gary Rossington, the final surviving guitarist from the Lynyrd Skynyrd plane crash incident, has passed away.
Three musicians of the iconic American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd along with three other passengers lost their lives in a tragic plane crash on the Louisiana-Mississippi border on October 20, 1977.
Founder and lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, backup singer Cassie Gaines, and her guitarist brother Steve Gaines were killed on impact.
The Convair CV-240 passenger plane crash also claimed the lives of pilot Walter McCreary, co-pilot William Gray, and assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick. Nevertheless, twenty people survived the plane crash.
Gene Odom, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s personal security manager and one of the survivors of the plane crash, informed the news outlets, “The crash robbed us of one of the great American musicians. It took away a dear friend of mine and a fishing buddy.”
Gene grew up with Van Zant and other founding members of the iconic band in Jacksonville, Florida. He revealed that the plane ran out of fuel at an altitude of about 10,000 feet and crashed violently into a wooded area.
Gene was thrown from the plane and was found by rescue teams after some time under one of the wings with severe injuries.
According to Gene Odom, he suffered a significant head injury from being thrown over the fuselage, numerous broken ribs, a broken neck, and 45 years of pain.
He learned about his three band members’ deaths after being discharged from the hospital.
Gene mentioned that the only reason twenty people survived was that there was no fuel left on the CV-240 passenger plane, preventing a fire.
The guitarist Gainess had only joined the band a year earlier at the suggestion of his sister.
Lynyrd Skynyrd remains one of the most prominent acts in the music industry and is arguably the top iconic rock band in U.S. history.
Lynyrd Skynyrd’s band has been on lead vocals for years with Johnny Van Zant, the founder’s younger brother. They mainly perform songs written and initially performed by Ronnie Van Zant half a century ago, a testament to his enduring legacy in rock music history.
In 2019, Gene organized a vigil for Van Zant and the other plane crash victims near the town of Gillsburg, Mississippi. A memorial was erected near the site of the tragic plane crash.
Gary Rossington died at 71
Gary Rossington, the last surviving founding member and guitarist of the iconic rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, has passed away at the age of 71.
The sad news of Gary Rossington’s passing was announced on Sunday evening, March 5, 2023, by Lynyrd Skynyrd’s official Facebook page.
While the cause of death was not disclosed, the guitarist had been struggling with various heart health issues, including an emergency open-heart surgery in 2021 during the band’s Big Wheels Keep on Turning Tour.
Gary also managed to survive the Louisiana-Mississippi border plane crash in 1977 that claimed the lives of his three band members.
