Greg Biffle plane crash: NTSB report indicates Biffle wasn’t flying plane, co-pilot ‘was not qualified’ to fly the Cessna Citation 550

The National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary report into the plane crash that killed former NASCAR driver Greg Biffle, his family and three others determined that Biffle was not flying the plane belonging to his company, GB Aviation Leasing LLC, when it crashed on Dec. 18.

The plane was flown by Dennis Dutton, a pilot certified to fly multiple commercial aircraft, with his son Jack in the right cockpit seat, according to the report released Friday. Biffle, a licensed pilot with “civilian flight experience that includes over 3,500 hours of flight time,” was seated behind the two and is described in the report as the rear passenger.

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However, neither Biffle nor Jack Dutton was licensed to fly the Cessna Citation. The report notes that Dennis Dutton was licensed to fly the Citation with a second-in-command on board, and that although Jack Dutton was a pilot himself, he was “not qualified to perform second-in-command duties in flight” because he had just over 175 hours of single-engine aircraft experience, according to the NTSB.

Ross Aimer, CEO of Aero Consulting Experts, told Yahoo Sports that Jack Dutton’s lack of qualifications was “problematic” and that the plane required two pilots.

“In this particular case, since it required two pilots and neither Biffle nor the young man was qualified, there should have been a licensed pilot in that seat,” Aimer said.

Biffle, his wife Cristina, their son Ryder, Biffle’s daughter Emma, ​​Dennis and Jack Dutton, and Craig Wadsworth were on the plane that attempted to land at Statesville (North Carolina) Regional Airport shortly after taking off from the same airport. They were flying to Sarasota, Florida.

The Cessna Citation 550 is a twin-engine aircraft and the report states that problems with the aircraft began before the flight began. Here are the key takeaways from the NTSB’s findings.

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• The left engine initially failed to start before both engines started at approximately 9:53 ET. While the aircraft was taxiing for takeoff, “the pilot and two pilot-rated passengers discussed that the thrust reverser indicator lights for an unspecified engine were inoperative, but the thrust reverser for the affected engine was functioning properly.”

• The plane took off at approximately 10:06. “During takeoff, the rear passenger commented that the left engine was producing more power than the right and stated that there might be a malfunction in the display. The pilot continued takeoff.” The report states that skies were overcast at about 5,000 feet for the entire flight, but visibility dropped from 10 miles to 5 miles from 9:54 to 10:15.

• Initial GPS data shows that the plane turned left as it climbed, and Dennis Dutton said he would fly under visual flight rules before being allowed to fly under instrument flight rules. After making a 180-degree turn and reaching 2,200 feet, it “continued to turn left and began to descend.” Between 10:08 and 10:10, the right-seat passenger attempted to contact “air traffic control” and activate the flight’s IFR flight plan but was unsuccessful due to the controller’s workload and radio communications involved.

• At 10:09, Dennis Dutton and Biffle discussed climbing higher when they were required to continue flying under visual flight rules. The report states that “the pilot began the climb and shortly afterwards the rear passenger noticed a difference between the turbine temperature indicators between the left and right engine stages.” There was no further discussion involving the vehicles for the remainder of the time. [cockpit voice recorder] recording” and the autopilot goes off – whether intentionally or independently – just after 10:10 p.m.

• A few seconds later, “the cockpit area microphone recorded the pilot making remarks indicating that the altitude indicator was not working properly and that other flight instruments on the left side may not have been working properly either.” The onboard Garmin GPS had stopped recording airspeed data and heading data at that time.

• At 10:11, “aircraft controls were transferred to the right seat passenger at an altitude of approximately 4,500 ft m.” At 10:13 a.m., the plane was just under 500 meters and all three said they could see the ground. “Although a positive transfer of control of the aircraft was not recorded, subsequent communication between the pilot and the right-seat passenger was consistent with the pilot regaining control of the aircraft at that time.” Just after 10:13, the pilot turned the plane right to west and requested that the landing gear be extended. “Subsequent discussions were consistent with the landing gear being configured, but the gear indicator lights did not illuminate.”

• Jack Dutton noted that “they were having some issues here” on the joint traffic alert frequency just before 10:14 p.m. Biffle references the power to an alternator; The Cessna Citation 550 does not have an alternator. Following a brief audio quality issue with the cockpit voice recorder, Dennis Dutton was heard saying there was a “problem” but did not specify what the problem was “or what measures were taken to fix it”.

• GPS data began recording again just after 10:14, and Dennis Dutton “made comments indicating that he had visually acquired the runway” around 10:15. Data obtained from GPS “showed that the aircraft’s airspeed and altitude continued to decrease from the moment the aircraft aligned on final approach to the runway until 10:15:18, when the aircraft’s altitude dropped below 1,000 feet and below 99 KTS.

• The aircraft hit a light station approximately 400 meters from the runway threshold, and from this light station “a group of damaged trees located approximately 235 meters away” were cut down approximately 12 meters above ground level. “The first sign of the fire was the blackened branches and grass on the west side of the trees.”

• “A ground impression was observed approximately 350 feet away. [light station]near and along the airport perimeter fence [runway lights]. The debris path continued westward across the runway overflow to where the main debris came to rest in the runway explosion area approximately 400 feet from the runway 28 threshold. “Heavy charring” was visible from a second set of lights and “continued into the wreckage for the remaining length of the wreckage area.”

• After stopping, the engines remained attached to the aircraft and both thrust reversers were in the stowed position. Investigators “found no evidence of unrestrained engine failure in either engine. Examination of the cockpit throttle dial revealed that both thrust levers were in the full forward position and both rear throttle levers were in the down position, consistent with stacking.”

Biffle competed in the NASCAR Cup Series for 16 full- or part-time seasons from 2002 to 2022. He raced full-time in the Cup Series from 2003 to 2016, posting 19 wins and 92 top-five finishes in 515 career starts.

His best season came in 2005, when he finished second to Tony Stewart in the points standings. Biffle’s six wins were the most in the Cup Series that season, and his 11.9 finishing average was second only to Stewart.

Biffle is one of only two drivers to win championships in both the third-tier NASCAR Truck Series and the second-tier NASCAR Xfinity Series.