Photo credit:  THE VOICE — “Live Top 12 Results” Episode 2420B — Pictured: Reba McEntire — (Photo by: Trae Patton/NBC via Getty Images)

 

Reba McEntire observed the 33rd anniversary of a tragic plane crash that claimed the lives of seven of her band members and her tour manager by posting on social media on Saturday (March 16), expressing, “May they rest in peace, dear friends.”

The renowned country singer lost her band members and tour manager in a plane crash that occurred after she and her band performed a private show in San Diego on March 16, 1991.

Following their performance, two planes were ready at Brown Field Municipal Airport to transport the musicians to Fort Wayne, Ind., for their next concert. While McEntire, her then-husband and manager Narvel Blackstock, and her stylist Sandi Spika chose to stay overnight in San Diego, the band and tour manager boarded the first plane.

The second plane safely reached its destination, but tragically, the first plane carrying McEntire’s entourage crashed just ten miles east of the airport shortly after takeoff, when the wing of the airplane struck a rock on the side of Otay Mountain, resulting in the loss of all on board.

Reflecting on the event during a poignant interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2012, McEntire recalled, “When we received the news, Narvel went to speak with our pilot, who informed us of the tragedy. Returning to the hotel room where I was at two or three o’clock in the morning, Narvel relayed that one of the planes had crashed. I asked, ‘Are they alright?’ He replied, ‘I don’t believe so.’ I persisted, ‘But you’re uncertain?’ He replied, ‘I don’t believe so.'”

Fellow country artists such as Vince Gill and Dolly Parton offered their bands for McEntire to complete her tour, but she made the decision not to continue. Instead, she dedicated her subsequent album, “For My Broken Heart,” to the lost band members, which reached the top spot on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and sold four million copies.

“Today marks 33 years since Heaven welcomed some remarkable angels,” McEntire shared on Twitter on Saturday, concluding with, “May they rest in peace, dear friends.” She also honored her departed friends and bandmates in her post, incorporating lyrics from the album’s title song: “I reckon the world won’t pause… for my shattered heart.”