Ricky Nelson, His Wife and Band Members Killed in DC-3 Crash

When rock-and-roll legend Ricky Nelson, his fiancé and five others were killed in a 1986 airplane crash, speculation surrounded the condition of the plane, a DC-3 which reportedly had experienced problems in the past. The band was flying from Alabama to Dallas for a New Year’s Eve concert when it crashed and burned in a field near De Kalb, Texas, with only the pilot and co-pilot surviving.

One band member reportedly told family members he was afraid to fly in the plane because it had problems with its engine about a month before the fatal crash. On the morning of the crash, the pilots worked on the engine while the band waited for four hours. The doubting band member was among those killed.

CaseyGerry represented passengers in a subsequent lawsuit.