Wyoming
Bad Autopilot May Have Contributed To Wyoming Air Crash That Killed 7
A single-engine Pilatus PC-12/47E turboprop airplane that crashed Friday afternoon in northeast Wyoming, killing all seven onboard, reported an equipment malfunction consistent with problems that model of aircraft is known to have, says a longtime pilot and crash investigator.
National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Keith Holloway said in a Saturday statement that preliminary information shows the plane went down after reporting an “autopilot issue during flight.”
The plane left Nebraska about midday Friday and was bound for Billings, Montana. It crashed about 1 p.m. near the Montana border in northern Campbell County.
Among those killed were three members of the Gospel Hall of Fame group The Nelons — co-founder Kelly Nelon Clark and husband Jason Clark, and daughter Amber Nelon Kistler. Also killed were Nathan Kistler, Melodi Hodges and Larry and Melissa Haynie.
That the plane reported an autopilot issue, along with violent pitching up and down before plummeting from an altitude of 26,000 feet, doesn’t surprise Dan Gryder, a pilot who investigates aircraft incidents and crashes. He reports his findings on his popular YouTube channel.
He told Cowboy State Daily he doesn’t know the exact cause of the crash, but based on the information the plane relayed before it went down, reported by Flight Aware, frantic whipping up and down at 300 mph would have caused the plane to break apart.
“Like, when you stick your hand out going down the road,” said Gryder, describing the air’s effect. “It forces your hand up with a lot of force.”
NTSB investigators are on site and will issue a preliminary report in about two weeks, according to agency protocol.
“The aircraft is in a remote location, and once (investigators) gain access, they will begin documenting the scene, examining the aircraft,” Holloway said in the Saturday statement. “The aircraft will then be recovered and taken to a secure facility for further evaluation.”
A Domino Effect
The force the plane could have been under could have started what Gryder called a domino effect of parts breaking off the plane, then more breakage.
Campbell County law enforcement scanner communications Friday afternoon responding to the crash attested to this as well. One agent noted finding plane parts in a larger perimeter than one would expect from just the impact of a crash.
The plane must have been breaking apart while still airborne, the agent said.
Photos of debris scattered over the area published by the Gillette News Record also seem to corroborate Gryder’s hypothesis.
Something may have gone wrong with the autopilot system just before the crash, said Gryder.
The Pilatus is a good plane, he said, but any one of four or five other companies could have manufactured the autopilot system, and he said he does not know which one built the one on this particular plane.
The autopilot is hooked to the elevator pitch trim servo, which moves a tiny tab that controls pitch — especially at high speeds, he said.
That tab can have an “absolutely huge” effect on the plane’s position. Gryder likened it to the power of the nation’s top executive.
“It’s amazing to me that the president of the United States can have that much power, but he does,” he said.
Once the plane starts to break apart, “you’re done,” he said. There’s no way to reverse the inevitable crash at that point.
The fall would have unfolded over about two violent minutes, and Gryder said it’s his opinion everyone on board would have been alive to experience it until impact.
Jet Fuel
The plane had fueled up in Nebraska shortly before flying over Wyoming. It was probably carrying around 300 gallons of jet fuel when it approached the Wyoming-Montana border, Gryder said.
The jet fuel crashing down into Wyoming’s sage lands helped spark a large fire that Campbell County authorities fought both via air and from the ground.
Firefighters were combatting the last smolders Saturday, the agency reported.
The Race Is Run
The Gaither Management Group, which handles The Nelons, acknowledged the deaths of the members in a statement late Friday.
“One of the best loved Gospel music families in America, The Nelons, were involved in a tragic, fatal plane crash on Friday afternoon on their way to join the Gaither Homecoming Cruise to Alaska,” the statement reads.
Autumn Nelon Streetman, the youngest daughter of Jason and Kelly Nelon Clark, was not on the plane and confirmed their identities in a separate 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,” her statement reads. “We appreciate your continued prayers, love and support as we navigate the coming days.”
The Nelons performed vocally powerful ballads and pop-bluegrass worship songs. Their YouTube profile features such works as a soulful cover of Casting Crowns song “The Only Scars In Heaven” — a song about looking forward to an eternity with loved ones in heaven.
They covered the popular Christian version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” in a campfire-side film featuring layered harmonies, and they tackled the folk classic “Gentle On My Mind” with a banjo.
The Nelons have won 10 Gospel Music Association Awards and was inducted into the GMA Hall of Fame in 2016.
Contact Clair McFarland at clair@cowboystatedaily.com
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
CASPER, Wyo. — High school athletics in Wyoming could see some drastic changes in the coming years following legislative changes to the state’s education budget, the Wyoming High School Activities Association recently announced in a statement.
According to the WHSAA, Wyoming school districts are facing a projected $3.9 million shortfall in activities funding, forcing officials to consider significant cuts to high school sports and extracurricular programs.
The WHSAA shared details regarding a new “silo” funding model implemented by the Legislature, stating that the recalibrated block grant model reduced funding for student activities and extra-duty responsibilities from $46.3 million to $42.4 million, an approximately 8.4% decrease statewide.
WHSAA Commissioner Trevor Wilson said the restructuring also restricts district access to an additional $76.2 million in previously flexible funding.
“A significant portion of the [April 28 WHSAA Board of Directors] meeting was dedicated to discussing the projected funding shortfall,” Wilson wrote.
The WHSAA is weighing several strategies to address rising costs with fewer resources. Proposed changes include eliminating regional tournaments and reducing the number of teams qualifying for state events from eight to four; limiting wrestling to two classes and restricting track and field state participants to the top 16 marks; making cuts to soccer, indoor track and field, Nordic and Alpine skiing, swimming and diving, spring golf and tennis; and reducing in-person speech and debate events by half and centrally locating All-State Music events to minimize travel. The board also recommended increasing gate admission or implementing student participation fees to offset costs.
While the WHSAA release states that no plans have been finalized and the various changes are currently just possibilities, Natrona County School District 1 Board of Trustees member Mary Schmidt criticized the WHSAA’s handling of the news at Monday’s board meeting.
“I take some issues with this, [including] the sheer fact that we as Board of Trustees members have not talked about that at all,” Schmidt said. “It is not our intent and it has not been brought to us to cut our athletics or activities budget for the upcoming school year. … I take issue with them picking sports and getting the community upset and ginning them up to be upset that this is all going to be cut when that hasn’t been discussed.”
Later in the meeting, Superintendent Angela Hensley clarified that Natrona County School District 1’s athletics and activities budget saw a reduction of roughly $550,000 in the coming year’s budget, but said the local school district does not plan to cut any sports.
“Thank you, Trustee Schmidt, for saying this, because I think people are wondering — we are not planning to cut athletics and activities for next year,” Hensley said. “We do have to take a look at our entire budget as we have talked about, as we learn more about these new rules that come in.”
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Republished with permission from Wyoming News Now, a TV news outlet covering the Cheyenne and Casper areas.
Cheyenne City Council has introduced a temporary moratorium, or pause, on new data center construction.
“The end goal is to actually have regulations in place, to have really heavy public involvement with this with data centers,” said Councilman Mark Moody.
The proposed ordinance is not a permanent ban on data centers and would not affect data centers currently under construction.
Councilman Moody says this is a bipartisan issue.
“I just want to make this clear, I’m not against data centers. We do need them from a national security perspective,” he said.
He said there needs to be more public input and regulations regarding data centers in Cheyenne.
The ordinance would require city staff to study data center impacts such as electricity usage, electricity tariffs, closed-loop cooling systems, groundwater impacts, agricultural impacts, and land value.
Cheyenne LEADS, the economic development corporation for Cheyenne and Laramie County, reported in November 2025 that there are 12 operational data centers in Wyoming, five under construction and plans for 43 data centers announced across the state.
“There needs to be more public input with this, and also to see how many we can sustain here in this community, cause there are talks of 43, and then another day 70. How many can we sustain here?” said Councilman Moody.
The proposed moratorium will now go to the Public Services Committee on Monday, May 18 at noon in the Municipal Building.
Sheridan will play in the North Regional Tournament at Gillette, while the South Regional Tournament will be played at Rock Springs.
North Regional Tournament at Gillette:
Checking record vs. highest team in the quadrant not involved in the tie, Thunder Basin gets the #1 Northeast seed over Campbell County, because the Lady Bolts went 3-1 vs. Sheridan, whereas the Lady Camels went 2-2.
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 NE) Thunder Basin vs. (#4 NW) Jackson – 11am
(#2 NW) Natrona County vs. (#3 NE) Sheridan – 11am
(#2 NE) Campbell County vs. (#3 NW) Kelly Walsh – 1pm
(#1 NW) Cody vs. (#4 NE) Worland – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Thunder Basin/Jackson winner vs. Natrona County/Sheridan winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh winner vs. Cody/Worland winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Thunder Basin/Jackson loser vs. Natrona County/Sheridan loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Campbell County/Kelly Walsh loser vs. Cody/Worland loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
South Regional Tournament at Rock Springs:
Friday, May 15th:
(#1 SW) Laramie vs. (#4 SE) Torrington – 11am
(#2 SE) Cheyenne East vs. (#3 SW) Green River – 11am
(#2 SW) Rock Springs vs. (#3 SE) Wheatland – 1pm
(#1 SE) Cheyenne Central vs. (#4 SW) Cheyenne South – 1pm
Semi-Finals:
Laramie/Torrington winner vs. Cheyenne East/Green River winner – 3pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Rock Springs/Wheatland winner vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South winner – 5pm Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
Consolation Round:
Laramie/Torrington loser vs. Cheyenne East/Green River loser – 3pm LOSER OUT!
Rock Springs/Wheatland loser vs. Cheyenne Central/Cheyenne South loser – 5pm LOSER OUT!
Saturday, May 16th:
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
TBA vs. TBA – 10am LOSER OUT! Winner qualifies for the state tournament.
2 10am winners vs. each other – 1pm 3rd Place
TBA vs. TBA – 1pm 1st Place
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