Source: Photo of Patsy Cline. (GAB Archive/Redferns) / Getty
Unfortunately, aviation tragedies can affect people from all walks of life, including those in the music industry. Several major stars have had their lives and careers cut abruptly short, yet their music and stories have endured the test of time, leaving behind lasting legacies that we can remember them by.
Here are 20 music figures we lost to aviation tragedies:
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The Sky is Crying: Music Figures We Lost in Aviation Tragedies was originally published on houstonseagle.com
1. Aaliyah
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Aaliyah, a rising superstar pop and R&B singer, tragically lost her life on Aug. 25, 2001, in a plane crash with eight others. The Cessna 402 she was traveling in crashed before the end of the runway shortly after takeoff. She was 22.
2. The Big Bopper
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Born in Sabine Pass, TX, J.P. Richardson (aka The Big Bopper), the rock and roll musician and disc jockey was flying with several other prominent musicians after a show in Clear Lake, IA. On Feb. 3, 1959, shortly after takeoff for reasons unknown, the plane crashed in a field, killing all aboard. Richardson was 28.
3. Patsy Cline
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Legendary country music singer Patsy Cline was traveling back from a benefit concert in Kansas City, KS, on March 5, 1963. The plane carrying Cline and a pair of other prominent country musicians went down in poor weather conditions, crashing in a forest in Camden, TN. She was 30.
4. Cowboy Copas
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Onboard the same flight as Cline, Lloyd Estel Copas (aka Cowboy Copas), a popular early country singer, was traveling back from the same benefit concert in Kansas City, KS. He died at the age of 49.
5. Jim Croce
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Jim Croce, an American folk and soft-rock singer, was out on his “Life and Times” tour on Sept. 20, 1973. He and five others aboard their charted Beechcraft E18S plane were killed shortly after takeoff in Natichitoches, LA. He was 30 years old.
6. John Denver
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Legendary country and folk singer John Denver was piloting his homebuilt Rutan Long-EZ aircraft on Oct. 12, 1997, near Pacific Grove, CA. The singer’s plane ran out of fuel and crashed into Monterey Bay. He was 53 years old.
7. Cassie Gaines
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(Left) Joining Lynyrd Skynyrd as part of their backing vocal trio, the Honkettes, in 1975, Cassie Gaines would later recommend to Ronnie Van Zant to hire her brother, Steve Gaines, as the band’s new guitarist. On Oct. 20, 1977, Cassie was onboard the band’s Convair CV-240 traveling between shows. The band’s plane ran out of fuel near Gillsburg, MS, killing five onboard, including Cassie. She survived the initial crash, but succumbed to her injuries shortly after. She was 29.
8. Steve Gaines
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Onboard with his sister, Cassie, and the rest of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Steve Gaines was among the five killed in the plane crash. He was 28 years old. He had been with Lynyrd Skynyrd since 1976.
9. Troy Gentry
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One half of country duo Montgomery Gentry, Troy Gentry was onboard a helicopter for a sight-seeing tour ahead of a show in Medford, NJ, on Sept. 8, 2017. The helicopter began experiencing mechanical issues, and crashed during an uncontrolled landing. He died on the way to the hospital at the age of 50.
10. Hawkshaw Hawkins
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Onboard the same flight with Cline and Copas, country singer Harold “Hawkshaw” Hawkins died at the age of 41/
11. Buddy Holly
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Onboard the same plane as The Big Bopper, rock and roll singer Buddy Holly, formerly of The Crickets, was killed in the plane crash after the aircraft turned end over end in a cornfield. He was 22.
12. Ricky Nelson
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Former television star and rock musician Ricky Nelson was flying in a DC-3 on Dec. 31, 1985, when an emergency landing failed, killing him and six passengers in De Kale, TX. He was 45.
13. Otis Redding
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Often referred to as the “King of Soul,” Otis Redding was flying in his Beechcraft H18 with the Bar-Kays to Madison, WI, on Dec. 10, 1967. The plane crashed into Lake Monona, just outside of Madison, killing all but the Bar-Kays’ Ben Cauley, due to poor flying conditions. He was 26.
14. Jim Reeves
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Born in Galloway, TX, country singer Jim Reeves was heading to Nashville in a Beechcraft Debonair on July 31, 1964. At the controls, Reeves encountered a thunderstorm and crashed in Davidson County, TN. He was 40.
15. Randy Rhoads
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Often considered as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Randy Rhoads, formerly of Quiet Riot, was touring with Ozzy Osbourne as part of his solo band. On March 19, 1982, he was onboard a Beechcraft F35 plane piloted by the band’s tour bus driver. The pilot began making reckless passes over the bus. The pilot made two successful attempts, but on the third clipped the roof of the bus with one of the wings, sending the plane spiraling into a nearby mansion. There are unconfirmed reports by eyewitnesses that Rhoads may have been fighting with the pilot over the controls, who may have been self-destructive. He may have prevented the pilot from directly impacting the bus, saving Osbourne and the rest of the occupants’ lives. He was 25.
16. Shirley Strachan
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(Second from the left) Australian rock singer Shirley Strachan of the Skyhooks was piloting a helicopter he was training in on Aug. 21, 2001. He encountered turbulence and crashed in Mount Archer, Queensland. He was 49.
17. Melanie Thornton
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Pop and dance singer Melanie Thornton was traveling from Berlin, Germany, to Zurich, Switzerland while touring in Europe on Nov. 24, 2001. The pilot descending the plane too early while attempting to land, crashing the plane into the hill and killing Thornton and 23 others. She was 34.
18. Ritchie Valens
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Rock and roll singer Ritchie “Valens” Valenzuela was onboard the same aircraft as The Big Bopper and Holly, when the plane went down in an Iowa cornfield. He was 17.
19. Ronnie Van Zant
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Founder and frontman of legendary southern rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd, Ronnie Van Zant was among those killed in the 1977 plane crash. He reportedly died upon impact. He was 29. His younger brother, Johnny Van Zant, would go on to replace him upon Lynyrd Skynyrd’s reunion in 1987.
20. Stevie Ray Vaughan
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Legendary Texan blues rock musician Stevie Ray Vaughan of Dallas was flying in a Bell 206B helicopter after show at Alpine Valley Music Theatre in East Troy, WI on Aug. 27, 1990. Headed for Midway International Airport in Chicago, Vaughan and four others were killed when their aircraft crashed into a nearby ski hill in foggy conditions. He was 35.
