Former NASCAR driver Greg Biffle and his family were among those killed when a Cessna C550 aircraft crashed at Statesville Regional Airport in North Carolina.
The seven victims of the crash include Greg Biffle, Cristina Biffle, Emma Biffle, Ryder Biffle, Dennis Dutton, Jack Dutton, and Craig Wadsworth, as per a release from NASCAR.
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Now, the NTSB has announced that they are probing the incident and expect to focus on the aircraft’s flight path as well as performance, the actions of the pilot and their communications. They will also check weather conditions, and the maintenance history and airworthiness records of the aircraft in question.
The FAA is also involved in the investigation but the NTSB is leading, and investigators seek to document the wreckage and impact area. They also plan on examining key components and the equipment onboard. There will also be a review of any available flight data and air traffic control information.
{{/usCountry}}The FAA is also involved in the investigation but the NTSB is leading, and investigators seek to document the wreckage and impact area. They also plan on examining key components and the equipment onboard. There will also be a review of any available flight data and air traffic control information.
{{/usCountry}}All of this is to determine not just what happened, but also the why of it. The goal is for these findings to prevent such tragedies in the future. Amid the NTSB focus on the flight route, there has been a lot of curiosity around the route that Biffle's plane took in the final moments. Here's all you need to know about it.
Greg Biffle plane path
The flight data shows that Biffle's plane was trying to make it back to the runway. The aircraft was headed to Sarasota, Florida, when it plummeted to the ground and exploded in a ball of fire.
The plane had first taken off from the airport, before it circled back ahead of the deadly crash, as per FlightAware data. The fact that the plane had first taken off and then circled back could indicate a mechanical issue, as per WCNC's Chief Meteorologist Brad Panovich.
“Because if it was something on the take off or landing, it could be anything, right? But the fact that they took off and immediately circled back to the airport told me they probably were having some kind of trouble,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dan DePodwin, AccuWeather vice president of Forecasting, posted about adverse weather conditions around the airport. “Adverse weather conditions were reported in the vicinity of Statesville Regional Airport around the time of the plane crash,” he said.
As per the tracking data the aircraft took off, then came back to the airport, shifted to the right and stopped - which is presumably when the fireball erupted.