The “Jesus Take The Wheel” singer, Brett James, died alongside his wife and stepdaugther in a plane crash on Sept. 18. New details about the incident reveals James tried to land his plane before loosing control.
The Plane Shows No Signs of Engine Failure
According to People, the country singer was piloting a Cirrus SR22T on a flight from Nashville, Tennessee to Frankin, North Carolina.
At around 2:48 p.m. local time, they were approaching Macon County Airport (MCA) and “intended to perfromd a 360° turn to land” on the runway after asking for a visual approach.
The National Transportation Safety Board reported that soon after they received no update from the country singer. Surveillance videos caught James’s plan going into a “tightening spiral” after descending into a left turn. It soon led the aircraft to hit the ground.
Witnesses nearby recounted how the plane “rocked from side-to-side” before falling behind a tree line. The crash occured near MCA and west of Iotla Valley Elementary School.
The NTSB recovered the plane for a further investigation, but found no signs of engine failure to have caused the crash.
Brett James and His Wife Celebrated His Step Daughter’s Birthday Days Before
In a now-bittersweet Instagram post, James’s wife, Melody Wilson, shared a heartfelt message of love and congratulations to her daughter, Meryl Maxwell Wilson, on her birthday.
The 28-year-old was also on board the plane and did not survive alongside her mother and stepfather.
“Happy Birthday my Love!! How Blessed am I to be your Momma! You’re the MOST BEAUTIFUL AMAZING HUMAN inside and out! I’m humbled and grateful everyday for your shining presence in my life!” wrote Wilson in her post.
“God has already used you for His Kingdom in so many ways and so much more to come! No words can express what a gift you are to me and everyone that KNOWS YOU.”
James is surived by his three children who he had with his first wife, Sandra Cornelius-Little.
