Kelly Nelon Clark, her husband, Jason Clark, and their daughter, Amber Nelon Kistler, were en route to the Gaither Homecoming Cruise in Alaska. Four additional people, including the pilot, were also killed.<\/strong><\/p>\n Three members of The Nelons, a prominent gospel music family group from Atlanta, died in a plane crash on Friday afternoon that claimed the lives of four other individuals, according to a statement issued by Gaither Management Group on Saturday.<\/p>\n The accident occurred near Recluse, Wyoming, a small community in the northeastern part of the state, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). Those who died were identified as\u00a0Kelly Nelon Clark<\/strong>, her husband\u00a0Jason Clark<\/strong>, and their daughter\u00a0Amber Nelon Kistler<\/strong>, as well as Amber\u2019s husband\u00a0Nathan Kistler<\/strong>, assistant\u00a0Melodi Hodges<\/strong>, pilot\u00a0Larry Haynie<\/strong>, and his wife\u00a0Melissa<\/strong>.<\/p>\n Gaither Management Group noted that the family had been headed to the Gaither Homecoming Cruise to Alaska at the time of the crash. While investigators are still determining what led to the tragedy, the NTSB confirmed that it occurred following reports of an autopilot malfunction on the Pilatus PC-12\/47E turboprop aircraft.<\/p>\n The only member of The Nelons not on the plane,\u00a0Autumn Nelon Streetman<\/strong>, is also part of the group. She released a brief statement expressing gratitude for \u201cthe prayers that have been extended already to me, my husband, Jamie, and our soon-to-be-born baby boy, as well as Jason\u2019s parents, Dan and Linda Clark.\u201d She added, \u201cWe appreciate your continued prayers, love and support as we navigate the coming days.\u201d<\/p>\n On Friday, the group\u2019s last Instagram post showed them making a stopover in Nebraska. In the video, Jason Clark could be heard saying, \u201cGaither Homecoming Alaskan cruise. We are on our way,\u201d before showing everyone else on the trip.<\/p>\n The National Transportation Safety Board, which is currently examining the crash site, shared that the pilot reported a problem with the plane\u2019s autopilot system shortly before the crash. With the aircraft located in a remote area, investigators are just beginning their work to determine the exact cause.<\/p>\n Fragments of the plane were found scattered around a wide debris field, the NTSB spokesperson said, emphasizing that information will remain limited until the agency\u2019s on-site assessment is complete.<\/p>\n Pilot\u00a0Larry Haynie<\/strong>\u00a0also served as chairman of the Georgia Department of Corrections Board. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp expressed his condolences, noting that Larry and Melissa Haynie were \u201cdevoted to one another, to their grandchildren and family, and were also devoted to \u2014 and staunch supporters of \u2014 the GDC family.\u201d<\/p>\n Gov. Kemp also said he was \u201ctruly saddened\u201d by the tragic loss. \u201cOur entire family is asking everyone to join us in praying for those who have been lost, for their loved ones and communities, and for those throughout the gospel music community who have lost dear friends in this heartbreaking accident.\u201d<\/p>\n Founded in 1977 as The Rex Nelon Singers, the group evolved into The Nelons, made up of Kelly Nelon Clark, Jason Clark, and their daughters Amber and Autumn. Known for hits like \u201cThanks,\u201d \u201cCome Morning,\u201d and \u201cWe Shall Wear a Robe and Crown,\u201d The Nelons have recorded more than 35 albums and scored over 20 Top 5 Southern Gospel radio singles.<\/p>\n They were inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 2016 and, over the course of their career, received numerous accolades, including a Grammy nomination for Best Southern Gospel Album in 1991 and 35 GMA Dove Award nominations. Their most recent Dove Award came in 2021 for \u201cIf God Pulled Back the Curtain,\u201d which was named Country\/Bluegrass\/Roots Recorded Song of the Year.<\/p>\n Jackie Patillo, president of the Gospel Music Association, released a statement on Saturday mourning the loss. \u201cOur deepest condolences and prayers are with Autumn and the rest of the Nelon family. They will be forever cherished and remembered in the GMA Hall of Fame.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Three Members of Gospel Family Group The Nelons Killed in Wyoming Plane Crash Kelly Nelon Clark, her husband, Jason Clark, and their daughter, Amber Nelon Kistler, were en route to the Gaither Homecoming Cruise in Alaska. Four additional people, including the pilot, were also killed. Three members of The Nelons, a prominent gospel music family […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2720,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4666","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-random-stuff"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4666","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4666"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4666\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4667,"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4666\/revisions\/4667"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2720"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4666"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4666"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/buzzfeednews.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4666"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Group En Route to Gaither Cruise<\/h3>\n
Surviving Daughter Issues Statement<\/h3>\n
NTSB Investigation Underway<\/h3>\n
Remembering the Victims<\/h3>\n
Legacy of The Nelons<\/h3>\n