The pilot of the plane that crashed in July, resulting in the deaths of three members of the Atlanta gospel group The Nelons, lost autopilot and declared an emergency before the crash, according to a report from the National Transportation Safety Board. The group was en route to a Gaither Homecoming Cruise in Alaska when the crash occurred. Witnesses reported seeing the plane perform a “barrel roll” before crashing into terrain in Wyoming. The wreckage was found scattered in a 300 ft radius, with the left wing broken into two pieces 0.8 miles away. Those killed in the crash included Jason and Kelly Nelon Clark, Amber and Nathan Kistler, their assistant Melodi Hodges, and the pilot Larry Haynie and his wife Melissa. Larry Haynie was also the chairman of the Georgia Department of Corrections Board. The only surviving member of The Nelons is Autumn Nelon Streetman, who was not on board the plane. The Nelons, a beloved gospel music family quartet from Atlanta, were inducted into the Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame in 2016. The group was first formed in 1977 by Rex Nelon as a spinoff of The Lefevres. The tragedy has left the gospel music community mourning the loss of these talented individuals.
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