Dubbed “the day the music died,” by Don McClean's chilling lyric, Buddy Holly's untimely death in 1956 inspired countless conspiracy theories, books and god knowns what else about the fatal plane crash which killed one of the pioneers of rock'n'roll. Now, 56 years after the cherished icon passed away, the investigation surrounding his death has been re-opened.
The official report cited that a relatively inexperienced pilot made poor judgements among snowy conditions which ultimately lead to the plane carrying the American singer-songwriter and fellow rockers Ritchie Valens, 17, and JP Richardson also known as The Bog Bopper. But the police explanation just didn't cut it for fans. How could the most promising musician on the planet have been killed purely on pilot error?
Some allege the gun owned by Holly was found in the same field as the Beechcraft Bonanza wreckage, prompting the rumours that bullet holes decorated the pilot's passenger seat. The speculation has now sparked a revival of the original investigation on the request of LJ Coon, a pilot who's been conducting his own enquiry into the crash after appealing to the National Transportation Safety Board's cold case unit, pleading for them to take a second look.
Investigation into Buddy Holly's death to be re-opened (Twitter)
He argues that pilot errors don't account for the 21-year-old pilot, Robert Peterson who "would have flown out and about this airport at night, under multiple different conditions. He had to be very familiar with all directions of this airport in and out.” Coon notes that possible weight imbalances in the craft could easily have been to blame for the plane soaring down form the sky just four minutes after takeoff from Clear Lake, Iowa.
Holly was currently midway through his Winter Dance Party tour after breaking out from his band The Crickets. Tired with endless bus journeys, the superstar arranged for a plane ride to carry his band and their equipment to their next stop in Moorhead, Minnesota.
Other members of the band narrowly cheated death. Bassist Waylon Jennnings gave up his seat to a sick JP Richardson while Tommy Allsup's fate rested on nothing more than a coin toss for Valen's lethal seat.
RIchardson's son, who goes by the name Big Bopper Jr. demanded an enquiry into his father's body to be exhumed and examined for forensic testing. When no indication of any foul play was found, local paper The Globe Gazette called for an end to the speculation surrounding the tragedy.
