Gifts for NASCAR Fans
A private plane, reportedly owned by former NASCAR Cup Series driver Greg Biffle, has crashed near Statesville Regional Airport in Statesville, North Carolina.
UPDATE 4:33 PM ET: The families of Biffle and his wife have shared a statement confirming the passing of Greg, his wife Cristina, their son Ryder, his daughter Emma, as well as Dennis Dutton, his son Jack Dutton, and Craig Wadsworth.
UPDATE 4:00 PM ET: Jordan Bianchi of The Athletic reports that North Carolina State Highway Patrol has confirmed seven casualties, and that they “believe” that Biffle is one of those seven individuals. There is still no official word on Biffle or his family from officials.
UPDATE 1:43 PM ET: Former NASCAR Driver Kenny Wallace, in a post on X, says that his former motorhome driver, Craig Wadsworth, was also killed in the plane crash. There is still no official word on who has died.
UPDATE 1:34 PM ET: Biffle’s close friend, Garrett Mitchell, better known by his screen name, Cleetus McFarland, has confirmed that Biffle was on board the plane alongside his wife, daughter, and son. Mitchell claimed in this post on Facebook that Biffle was on his way to visit Mitchell. Shortly after his post, local station WCNC-TV noted that Biffle and the family had passed in a livestream newscast. As of this update, there is still no official confirmation of their passing.
UPDATE 1:15 PM ET: CNN reports “A federal source with knowledge of the crash tells CNN a person associated with NASCAR was on board the plane that crashed.” However, this individual “associated with NASCAR” is not confirmed to be Biffle.
UPDATE 12:37 PM ET: In a 12:30 PM ET press conference, John Ferguson of Statesville Regional Airport said that they will supply updates throughout the day. Statesville Regional Airport is shut down following the crash.
Per a post on Facebook from the Statesville Regional Airport, the crash occurred around 10:15 AM ET. However, there are limited details from the airport since this post, aside from reports that the Federal Aviation Administration is on site to investigate the crash.
Via the FAA Registry, the plane involved in the accident, a 1981 Cessna Citation with tail number N257BW, is owned by GB Aviation Leasing LLC, which WSOC-TV in Charlotte reports shares the same Mooresville mailing address as 55-year-old semi-retired NASCAR driver Greg Biffle.
As of initial press time, there are no reports of who or how many people were involved in the crash, nor the condition of those on board the plane. Iredell County Sheriff’s Office has reported that there were fatalities on board, though the total number of fatalities is unknown.
Footage near the crash site shows billows of black smoke rising from the scene, and pictures show fire crews surrounding what remains of the jet at the crash site. Throughout the morning, the area has seen overcast skies and light precipitation.
This is a developing story.
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