Members of gospel group the Nelons are killed in plane crash

Three members of the Atlanta family-band gospel group the Nelons have died in a plane crash.

In a statement, the group’s management firm Gaither Management Group confirmed that a plane carrying the band members to the Gaither Homecoming Cruise in Alaska crashed on Friday near Gillette, Wyo. The crash took the lives of Nelons members Kelly Nelon Clark, Jason Clark and Amber Nelon Kistler, along with Nathan Kistler, their assistant Melodi Hodges, and pilot Larry Haynie and his wife, Melissa.

“As many of you have heard by now, my father and mother, Jason and Kelly Nelon Clark, along with my sister, Amber and brother-in-law, Nathan, as well as our dear friends Melodi Hodges, Larry and Melissa Haynie were involved in a tragic plane crash on Friday,” Autumn Nelon Streetman, Jason and Kelly Nelon Clark’s daughter, said in a statement. “Thank you for the prayers that have been extended already to me, my husband, Jamie, and our soon-to-be-born baby boy, as well as Jason’s parents, Dan and Linda Clark. We appreciate your continued prayers, love and support as we navigate the coming days.”

In a statement to USA Today, Keith Holloway, spokesperson for the Nation Transportation Safety Board, said, “It is very early in the investigation and not much information [is] available at this time.”

“The aircraft is in a remote location and once they gain access, they will begin documenting the scene, examining the aircraft,” Holloway continued. “The aircraft will then be recovered and taken to a secure facility for further evaluation.”

The Nelons have a rich history in gospel that goes back decades. The group was founded by Rex Nelon in the late ‘70s, and while its membership has grown and changed over the years, the band and its members have released dozens of albums and been nominated for multiple Grammys and won several of the Gospel Music Assn.’s Dove Awards. The group was inducted into the Gospel Music Assn. Hall of Fame in 2016.