Ronnie Van Zant
On October 20, 1977, a plane carrying the band between shows from Greenville, South Carolina, to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, ran out of fuel outside Gillsburg, Mississippi. The passengers had been informed about potential problems with the Convair CV-240 and were told to brace for a crash. Van Zant died on impact from head injuries suffered after the aircraft struck a tree. Bandmates Steve Gaines and Cassie Gaines, along with assistant road manager Dean Kilpatrick, pilot Walter McCreary, and co-pilot William Gray, were also killed. The rest of the band was seriously injured. Van Zant was 29 years old.
Gary Rossington
Rossington grew up in a single parent household and says that early in their relationship, Van Zant became somewhat of a father figure to him. He credits Van Zant, who was three years his senior, with teaching him and his fellow bandmates how to drive a car, as well as introducing them to "all that stuff you learn when you're 14, 15, 16".