Mark Martin recalls his father’s ‘tragic’ demise in plane crash following Greg Biffle’s aviation disaster 

NASCAR legend Mark Martin, who also lost his father in a plane crash in 1998, was reminded of his own loss, hearing of fellow former Cup driver Greg Biffle's tragic demise in an aviation disaster. On Thursday, December 18, 55-year-old Biffle passed away in a jet crash, which took away the lives of his wife, Cristina, and two children at Statesville Regional Airport.

Martin's father, Julian Martin, piloted a twin-engine Piper that crashed on August 8, 1998. That crash also killed Julian's wife and an 11-year-old daughter. The twin-engine Piper went down near Great Basin National Park and started a forest fire.

Mark Martin, then 39, learned of the deaths after his NASCAR Cup race at Watkins Glen.

"Oh my god. This news reminds me [of] the tragedy that happened in 1998. Devastating," Mark Martin replied to a post on X.

Biffle's business jet crashed while attempting to return to the airport. Officials have confirmed that an eight-seater plane went down and caught fire, killing seven people on board. Federal investigators have also opened an investigation into the cause of the crash.

While the crash shocked fans, it is not the first aircraft accident the NASCAR world has suffered. In 1993, Alan Kulwicki died when the plane he was in crashed on approach to a Tennessee airport. That same year, Davey Allison died in a helicopter crash at Talladega.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. also survived a scary plane crash in August 2019, when the small aircraft he and his family were in veered off a Tennessee runway and caught fire. Everyone on board, including his wife Amy and their young daughter, walked away with only minor injuries.

"Savage to our racing community and families" - Mark Martin highlights NASCAR's loss to aviation accidents

While air travel is one of the safest modes of travel today, studies have found that scheduled commercial flights are safer than private jets or smaller aircraft. In 2022, the National Travel and Safety Board (NTSB) in the USA reported more fatal accidents per 100,000 flight hours than commercial carriers.

Mark Martin also touched on the same issue in his latest post on X.

"I can't help feeling angry. Aviation is a very safe way to travel BUT has been savage to our racing community and families throughout history," Martin Martin wrote.

In 2004, a Beechcraft King Air plane, carrying members of the Hendrick Motorsports family, also crashed on the way to Martinsville. It killed young Ricky Hendrick and other team members.

Curtis Turner, known for his wins in the 1950s and party lifestyle, was also killed when a plane, which he was piloting himself, crashed in 1970.

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Edited by Hitesh Nigam