A Cessna 550 business jet crashed Thursday at Statesville Regional Airport in North Carolina, killing seven people, including former NASCAR driver Greg Biffle, NASCAR reported.
The North Carolina Highway Patrol said it is believed that Biffle and members of his immediate family were among those killed but because of a severe post-crash fire, a formal confirmation has not been completed. The plane was registered to a company tied to Biffle, Reuters reported.
Authorities said they will release the names of the seven passengers once the medical examiner’s office has completed confirmation.
The plane, which was headed to Florida, tried to return to the North Carolina airport shortly after takeoff amid severe weather at around 10:15 a.m. (1515 GMT), according to FlightAware, an aircraft tracking website.
A picture posted by local media and social media showed a large fire on the runway amid the plane wreckage. The National Transportation Safety Board is sending a go-team to the scene and will brief the media on Friday on the investigation.
Biffle, 55, won 19 Cup Series races over a 20-year career, according to Field Level Media. His last race was the 2022 Geico 500 at Talladega, and in 2023, he was honoured as one of NASCAR’s 75 Greatest Drivers.
Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina was among lawmakers to eulogize Biffle. “Greg was a titan in the NASCAR community both on and off the racetrack,” Tillis said. “After Helene devastated Western North Carolina, Greg stepped up without hesitation by using his own personal helicopter to rescue victims and provide crucial aid to North Carolinians in need.”
The airport was closed after the incident and the debris must be removed from the runway before it can reopen, city officials said at a press conference.
(With inputs from Reuters)
