NTSB Reveals Cause of Plane Crash Involving Southern Gospel Group The Nelons
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Three members of the southern gospel group The Nelons were among seven killed in a tragic plane crash on July 26, 2024.
Two years later, the NTSB published its final report, revealing the cause of the fatal accident.
Three members of the award-winning family group The Nelons lost their lives when the plane they were traveling on crashed in rural Wyoming. Kelly Nelon Clark, her husband Jason Clark, and daughter Amber Nelon Kistler of The Nelons, as well as Amber’s husband, Nathan, were among the deceased. The group’s assistant, Melodi Hodges, pilot Larry Haynie, and his wife, Melissa, also died in the crash.
What caused the crash that killed three members of The Nelons?
In the final NTSB report released on August 26, investigators revealed that “a combination of weather conditions and the pilot’s distraction” led to the crash.
“The pilot’s loss of control due to spatial disorientation while operating in instrument
meteorological conditions, which resulted in an in-flight breakup. Contributing to the accident was the pilot’s distraction from the autopilot disconnecting due to an updraft from convective activity,” the report obtained by Country Rebel reads, indicating the determined probable cause of the accident.
The report confirms that the aircraft, a Pilatus Aircraft LTD PC-12/47E, departed the airport in Nebraska City, Nebraska, and was en route to Billings Logan International Airport in Billings, Montana, when it went down “in remote terrain about 12 miles northeast of Recluse, Wyoming.”
News of the plane crash was first released by Gaither Management Group, which represented the family.
The statement confirmed the crash and shared that the family was on their way to join the Gaither Homecoming Cruise to Alaska. The Nelons, along with many other members of the Gaither Homecoming family, were set to depart from Seattle for the cruise.
Autumn Nelon Streetman, the youngest daughter of the Nelons and the fourth member of the group, was not traveling with her family that day. She and her husband, Jamie, arrived in Seattle and were informed of the accident.
“They were brought to the hotel where artists were gathered with Bill and Gloria Gaither to pray, sing and embrace them in their grief, pledging to support them in whatever needs arise,” the statement read.
In the wake of the tragedy, Autumn Nelon Streetman chose to continue singing in honor of her family. She returned to the stage shortly after the crash to sing at her family’s funeral.
RELATED: AUTUMN NELON STREETMAN WELCOMES SON ON LATE MOM’S BIRTHDAY
Autumn joined The Isaacs to sing their powerful song, “Family Chain.” Watch that special moment unfold in the video below.
