\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSign up for the Sport newsletter\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tThank you!\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
Friends of Dennis and Jack Dutton have paid tribute to the pair following their tragic deathsCredit: Instagram \/ jack99938<\/p>\n
The doomed flight bound for Florida from North Carolina exploded into a ball of flames killing all seven peopleCredit: Reuters<\/p>\n
Biffle\u2019s plane was consumed by flamesCredit: Bobby Renwick via Storyful<\/p>\n
FAMILY TRAGEDY<\/p>\n
Dennis Dutton \u2013 a 40-year-aviation veteran and recently retired Delta Airlines pilot \u2013 and son Jack \u2013 a rising Auburn University junior who dreamed of following in his father\u2019s footsteps \u2013 also tragically died.<\/p>\n
Jack had just earned his FAA Instrument Rating \u2014 a milestone he proudly shared online only weeks before the tragedy.<\/p>\n
Friends told The U.S. Sun he had been especially \u201cexcited\u201d about the trip.<\/p>\n
\u201cDennis had been flying for 40 years,\u201d Jonathan Donahue, a former neighbor told The U.S. Sun. <\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t TRAGIC NOTE<\/p>\n Xmas cards sent by NASCAR legend arrive in mail – days after plane crash death<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t<\/a> \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t TRAGIC PHOTO<\/p>\n NASCAR star\u2019s eerie pic in cockpit months before plane crashed killing family<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cI imagine it was a mechanical error because he was a great leader and such a positive person. I couldn\u2019t imagine anything being his fault.\u201d<\/p>\n According to Donahue, the trouble, which also claimed the life of Biffle\u2019s<\/a> friend Craig Wadsworth, began almost immediately after takeoff.<\/p>\n \u201cAll I know,\u201d he said, \u201cis that there was a large, loud pop, like something broke on the plane at takeoff, and he immediately had to turn around and make an emergency landing.\u201d<\/p>\n Flight data backs up that chilling account.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Cessna Citation jet climbed sharply, then abruptly turned back toward the airport. <\/p>\n Its speed and altitude fluctuated wildly as the pilots struggled with poor visibility in low clouds and drizzle.<\/p>\n Moments later, the jet clipped light poles, smashed into a tree line, and exploded less than a mile from the runway.<\/p>\n No distress call was ever made.<\/p>\n For those who knew Dennis, the cruelty of the ending<\/a> is impossible to accept.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just tragic that he was with his young son as well,\u201d Donahue continued. <\/p>\n \u201cThis was a second marriage, so now his wife has not only lost her husband \u2014 but their only son together.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018ALWAYS POSITIVE, ALWAYS CALM\u2019<\/p>\n Jack, described to The U.S. Sun as magnetic, hilarious, and endlessly passionate about aviation and Auburn football, had wanted to be a pilot \u201csince he was out of the womb.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Planes weren\u2019t just a career goal \u2014 they were his entire world.<\/p>\n Friends say he could spend hours wandering airports just to watch aircraft take off.<\/p>\n \u00a0\u201cJack was incredible,\u201d lifelong buddy Giana Farry said. \u201cHe was like my brother all my life.\u201d<\/p>\n The pair met in a sixth grade coding class and never looked back.<\/p>\n \u201cHe had bangs that looked like barcodes,\u201d the North Carolina based student said. <\/p>\n \u201cHe didn\u2019t know how to talk to people and was obsessed with Foursquare and The Office, but he bloomed into the most magnificent person.\u201d<\/p>\n Dennis, meanwhile, was known as the kind of man who never panicked \u2014 even when calling into homeowners\u2019 meetings from Japan during overnight international flights.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was always so positive, enthusiastic, and supportive,\u201d Donahue said. \u201cVery calm. Very experienced. Flying to Asia and back was routine for him.\u201d<\/p>\n After mandatory retirement at 65, Dennis had begun easing into semi-retirement, flying private jets part-time.<\/p>\n \u201cI think he was just looking to ease his way into retirement,\u201d Donahue explained. \u201cThe airlines require you to retire, but that doesn\u2019t mean you stop flying.\u201d<\/p>\n Pals of Jack Dutton told The U.S. Sun he lived for flying and had dreams of following in his father\u2019s footstepsCredit: Instagram \/ jack99938<\/p>\n A map showing the plane\u2019s route before it crashedCredit: Getty Images<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tWho was Greg Biffle\n\t\t\t<\/p>\n Former NASCAR driver who raced at the sport\u2019s highest levels for more than a decade. LENGTHY INVESTIGATION<\/p>\n Investigators believe the jet may have suffered an engine issue, but aviation experts say the plane would still have had power \u2014 and may have stalled during a steep, last-second turn while trying to line up with the runway.<\/p>\n The cockpit voice recorder has been recovered, but friends of the family fear final answers could take 18 months or more.<\/p>\n Until then, mourners are only left with only memories \u2014 and grief.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have over 900 homeowners in our community,\u201d Donahue said. \u201cDennis was the guy who went around making sure the parks were taken care of. He didn\u2019t like punishing people. He\u2019d just say, \u2018Hey, you might want to fix this.\u2019 He was reasonable. He was kind.\u201d<\/p>\n When Donahue learned Dennis was among the dead, he was stunned.<\/p>\n \u201cI was dumbfounded,\u201d he said. \u201cHe had just retired. He had plans.\u201d<\/p>\n UNANSWERED QUESTIONS <\/p>\n As tributes pile up for Biffle, those closest to the Dutton\u2019s hope the father and son are not forgotten.<\/p>\n \u201cI know the NASCAR driver and his family was a tragedy too,\u201d Donahue said, \u201cbut more attention seems to be given to them than to Dennis and Jack.\u201d<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/newspress-collage-275u4bxy2-1766560693226.jpg\"\/)
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/1766909172_785_JA_Tragic_Photo_Nascar_COMP.jpg\"\/)
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\nTwo-time national-series champion: Truck Series champ (2000) and Xfinity\/Busch Series champ (2002).
\nRookie of the Year twice: Truck Series (1998) and Xfinity\/Busch Series (2001).
\n19 wins in 515 starts, with a best points finish of second overall in 2005.
\nMoved up through Trucks and Xfinity\/Busch before becoming a long-time Cup regular.
\nNamed to NASCAR\u2019s 75 Greatest Drivers list in 2023.<\/p>\n