Reba McEntire is acutely aware of the depths of grief and the breadth of loss. The terrible catastrophe that befell the country music superstar in 1991 altered the path of history. Tragically, while she was performing, her beloved band members, along with her trustworthy tour manager, died in an airplane crash.
On March 16, 1991, following a riveting performance by Reba McEntire and her band at a prominent event in San Diego, a horrible catastrophe occurred.
The band was scheduled to take a plane from Brown Field Municipal Airport to Fort Wayne, Indiana, for their next show.
As luck would have it, the band and tour manager boarded the first jet, leaving Reba, her manager and ex-husband Narvel Blackstock, and her stylist Sandi Spika behind for the evening in San Diego.
Reba McEntire had the guts to tell Oprah Winfrey what had happened in an emotional interview in 2012. The second aircraft took off and arrived at its destination without any issues.
Regretfully, the first aircraft bringing Reba’s loved ones crashed about 10 miles east of the airport, leaving the survivors severely injured.
“Everyone on board was killed when the plane’s wing hit a boulder on the edge of Otay Mountain,” Reba somberly told Oprah. As soon as we got the news, Narvel went up to our pilot and told him what was going on.
Narvel returned to the hotel room where Reba was waiting for updates late that night, perhaps two or three in the morning. The mood was heavy with the tragedy while Reba looked for answers. “One of the aircraft crashed,” said Narvel.
With a flicker of hope in her eyes, Reba asked about their pals. “Are they okay?” she said, hoping for a resounding “yes,” but was let down. When he answered, “I don’t think so,” they were both overcome with doubt.
Reba captivated them by revealing their insatiable interest about the specifics of the catastrophe that had befallen their loved ones. She claimed, her voice shaking with real sorrow, that Narvel huddled a phone in his hand and traveled from room to room searching for answers. “I apologized and said that the hurt never really goes away, even after 20 years. However, I see that happening. Narvel was pacing uncontrollably in agony.
Reba McEntire took comfort in the steadfast support of her close friends, Dolly Parton and Vince Gill, during this very depressing time. These generous people let their bands finish the tour after the catastrophe. But Reba graciously turned down their kind offers.
Rather, she started a personal healing process and devoted herself fully to her next album, “For My Broken Heart.” Her song honored her bandmates’ memories and demonstrated her unshakable love for them. It was an eloquent tribute to her fallen bandmates.
Interestingly, “For My Broken Heart” reached its peak of popularity, making its debut at No. Four million copies of the number one album on the prestigious Billboard Top Country Albums list were sold.
Reba McEntire dutifully honors the deceased every year on the melancholic anniversary of the awful occurrence. She makes advantage of social media to make sure their memory lives on. For her enormous Instagram following, she created a poignant memorial in 2014 to commemorate the crash’s anniversary.
Subsequently, in 2016, on the melancholic 25th anniversary of the catastrophe, Reba set off on a terrible journey to San Diego, a city she would always cherish. She generously shared this historic journey on multiple social media channels, giving her loyal followers a peek inside her recuperation.
Today is the 25th anniversary of the plane tragedy, as Reba herself noted in a heartfelt letter: “Today. When I returned to San Diego in November, I took a helicopter to the location of the sad incident. I couldn’t help but think that the departed are aware of our deep loss for them. Please accept my deepest sympathies and prayers for all the families and friends affected by this tragedy.
