1977 a plane carrying the rock band lynyrd skynyrd crashes in woo 10 20
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1977 49 years ago Selected Events October 20 3 sources

Three members of the American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd died when their chartered plane crashed in Gillsburg, Mississippi.

On October 20, in the year 1977, Three members of the American rock band Lynyrd Skynyrd died when their chartered plane crashed in Gillsburg, Mississippi. This event is recorded as a Selected Events event in the history of October 20, one of 439 recorded events on this date across all of history.

Lynyrd Skynyrd is an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida, in 1964. The group originally formed as My Backyard and comprised Ronnie Van Zant (vocals), Gary Rossington (guitar), Allen Collins (guitar), Larry Junstrom (bass), and Bob Burns (drums). The band spent four years touring small venues under various names and with several lineup changes before deciding on "Lynyrd Skynyrd" in 1968. The band released its first album, (Pronounced 'Lĕh-'nérd 'Skin-'nérd), in 1973. By then, they had settled on a lineup that included bassist Leon Wilkeson, keyboardist Billy Powell, and guitarist Ed King. Burns left and was replaced by Artimus Pyle in 1974. King left in 1975 and was replaced by Steve Gaines in 1976. At the height of their fame in the 1970s, the band popularized the Southern rock genre with songs such as "Sweet Home Alabama" and "Free Bird". After releasing five studio albums and one live album, the band's career was abruptly halted on October 20, 1977, when their chartered airplane crashed, killing Ronnie Van Zant, Steve Gaines, and backup singer Cassie Gaines, and seriously injuring the rest of the band.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on October 20, 1977 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Selected Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 3 Wikipedia articles.
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 15 September 2026.

On This Date in History 439

Type Year Date Event
Notable Deaths 2024 Oct 20 Barbara Dane, American folk, blues and jazz singer (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2024 Oct 20 Fethullah Gülen, Turkish preacher and theologian (born 1941)
Notable Deaths 2024 Oct 20 Walter Jacob, American Reform rabbi (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2024 Oct 20 Janusz Olejniczak, Polish classical pianist and actor (born 1952)
Notable Deaths 2024 Oct 20 Paul White, Baron Hanningfield, British life peer (born 1940)
Selected Events 2024 Oct 20 Prabowo Subianto and Gibran Rakabuming Raka were sworn in as president and vice president of Indonesia, becoming the…
Historical Events 2022 Oct 20 Liz Truss steps down as British Prime Minister and leader of the Conservative Party amid the country's political…
Notable Deaths 2022 Oct 20 Lucy Simon, American composer and songwriter (born 1940)
Selected Events 2022 Oct 20 Protests broke out across Chad after President Mahamat Déby (pictured) declared his intentions to extend his rule by…
Notable Deaths 2020 Oct 20 James Randi, Canadian-American stage magician and author (born 1928)
Historical Events 2018 Oct 20 The BepiColombo spacecraft is launched on an Ariane 5 rocket to study Mercury.
Notable Deaths 2018 Oct 20 Wim Kok, Dutch prime minister (born 1938)
Historical Events 2017 Oct 20 Syrian civil war: The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) declare victory in the Raqqa campaign.
Notable Deaths 2016 Oct 20 Robert E. Kramek, former United States Coast Guard admiral (born 1939)
Notable Deaths 2016 Oct 20 Michael Massee, American actor (born 1952)
Notable Deaths 2016 Oct 20 Junko Tabei, Japanese mountaineer (born 1939)
Notable Deaths 2016 Oct 20 Kaneta Kimotsuki, Japanese actor, voice actor, and theater director (born 1935)
Notable Deaths 2015 Oct 20 Makis Dendrinos, Greek basketball player and coach (born 1950)
Notable Deaths 2015 Oct 20 Arno Gruen, German-Swiss psychologist and psychoanalyst (born 1923)
Notable Deaths 2015 Oct 20 Kazimierz Łaski, Polish-Austrian economist and academic (born 1921)
Notable Deaths 2015 Oct 20 Michael Meacher, English academic and politician, Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions…
Notable Deaths 2015 Oct 20 Ian Steel, Scottish cyclist and manager (born 1928)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 20 René Burri, Swiss photographer and journalist (born 1933)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 20 Oscar de la Renta, Dominican-American fashion designer (born 1932)
Notable Deaths 2014 Oct 20 Christophe de Margerie, French businessman (born 1951)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 20 Jovanka Broz, Croatian-Serbian colonel (born 1924)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 20 Don James, American football player and coach (born 1932)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 20 Lawrence Klein, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1920)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 20 Joginder Singh, Kenyan race car driver (born 1932)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 20 Larri Thomas, American actress and dancer (born 1932)
Notable Deaths 2013 Oct 20 Sid Yudain, American journalist, founded Roll Call (born 1923)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 20 Przemysław Gintrowski, Polish poet and composer (born 1951)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 20 Paul Kurtz, American philosopher and academic (born 1925)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 20 Dave May, American baseball player (born 1943)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 20 John McConnell, American activist, created Earth Day (born 1915)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 20 E. Donnall Thomas, American physician and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1920)
Notable Deaths 2012 Oct 20 Raymond Watson, American businessman (born 1926)
Historical Events 2011 Oct 20 Libyan Crisis: Rebel forces capture Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi and his son Mutassim in his hometown of Sirte and…
Notable Deaths 2011 Oct 20 Muammar Gaddafi, Libyan colonel and politician, Prime Minister of Libya (born 1942)
Notable Deaths 2011 Oct 20 Mutassim Gaddafi, Libyan colonel (born 1974)
Notable Deaths 2011 Oct 20 Abu-Bakr Yunis Jabr, Libyan politician (born 1942)
Notable Deaths 2011 Oct 20 Iztok Puc, Croatian-Slovenian handball player (born 1966)
Selected Events 2011 Oct 20 First Libyan Civil War: Muammar Gaddafi, the deposed Libyan leader, was captured by rebel forces during the Battle of…
Notable Deaths 2010 Oct 20 W. Cary Edwards, American politician (born 1944)
Notable Deaths 2010 Oct 20 Bob Guccione, American publisher, founded Penthouse magazine (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2010 Oct 20 Eva Ibbotson, Austrian-English author (born 1925)
Notable Deaths 2010 Oct 20 Max Kohnstamm, Dutch historian and diplomat (born 1914)
Notable Deaths 2010 Oct 20 Farooq Leghari, Pakistani politician, 8th President of Pakistan (born 1940)
Notable Deaths 2008 Oct 20 Gene Hickerson, American football player (born 1935)
Notable Deaths 2007 Oct 20 Max McGee, American football player and sportscaster (born 1932)

This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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