A plane owned by retired NASCAR star Greg Biffle crashed at Statesville Regional Airport at 10:15 a.m. on the way to Bradenton, Florida.
Garrett Mitchell, better known as YouTuber Cleetus McFarland, has confirmed that the Biffle family was on board and indeed died in the incident.
“Unfortunately, I can confirm Greg Biffle, his wife Cristina, daughter Emma, and son Ryder were on that plane… because they were on their way to spend the afternoon with us. We are devastated. I’m so sorry to share this.”
Local authorities confirmed casualties but provided no additional details.
The incident occurred at 10:15 a.m. at the airport located 45 miles north of Charlotte, North Carolina, one of the regional facilities used by many organizations and individuals within the industry.
Overseeing the incident was the Iredell County Sheriff’s Office but in the hours since the crash, they have been joined on-site by the Federal Aviation Administration. A brief press conference was held around noon with airport manager John Ferguson sharing what little he could at the time.
This is before Mitchell stated the Biffles were amongst the casualties.
“Like we said, at approximately 10:15 a.m., we got a report of a jet that crashed off the end of the runway on the east end. By time I came out, it was fully engulfed. We’ve had multiple agencies that have come. The FAA arrived at about 12 o’clock today.
“They are taking over the scene and the investigation. We have no information on the cause. The airport is closed until further notice. It will take time to get the debris off the runway.”
The following update on the reported plane crash in Statesville, NC, is available from AccuWeather: “Adverse weather conditions were reported in the vicinity of Statesville Regional Airport around the time of the plane crash. Heavy drizzle and a cloud ceiling near 1,200 feet were reported at 10:15 a.m. The cloud ceiling had reportedly lowered to around 400 feet, with heavy rain reducing visibility to less than 2 miles at 10:30 a.m. Weather conditions are often a critical factor that investigators carefully review after a plane crash. It may take months to a year or longer for investigators to determine if the weather conditions contributed to the crash.”
The plane was quickly identified in the moments after the crash as a Cessna C550 with the tail number N257BW, which is owned by Biffle’s GB Aviation Leasing LLC.
Biffle as the 2002 NASCAR Busch Series champion, the 2000 Craftsman Truck Series champion and was named as one of the sport's 75 greatest drivers in 2023 due to his 19 wins at the highest level from 2002 through sporadic starts this decade.
In recent years, Biffle became known for philanthropy centering on animal welfare through his Greg Biffle Foundation and his relief efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in 2024. Biffle is a registered pilot and used his helicopter to take supplies to Western North Carolina in the aftermath of the devastating storm.
According to Kenny Wallace, Craig Wadsworth was also on board the aircraft with the Biffle family.
Craig Wadsworth drove of our motorhome for six years. Our family is heart broke right now 😔 He died on the airplane.
— Kenny Wallace (@Kenny_Wallace) December 18, 2025
I will be giving my thoughts at a later date😔❤️ pic.twitter.com/2bvswPJx01
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information become available
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