A YOUTUBE star and her father have been killed in a plane crash – only weeks after a near-fatal “malfunction” at 4,000ft.
Jenny Blalock, 45, and dad James, 78, went down over Tennessee on Thursday, crashing into a remote area that rescue services struggled to access.
Instagram/865flygirlJenny and James Blalock were killed together in a plane crash on Thursday over rural Tennessee[/caption]
Instagram/865flygirlThe father-daughter duo regularly filmed their flights together for her popular YouTube channel[/caption]
Instagram/865flygirlJenny, who went by TNFlyGirl, suffered a plane ‘malfunction’ at 4,000ft only weeks ago[/caption]
The pair were killed when Jenny’s Beechcraft 35 smashed into the ground near Pulaski at around 11.15am.
Their bodies were found next to the single-engine plane close to the Alabama border.
“It was just devastating,” Bill Myers, director of the Giles County Office of Emergency Management, told 10 News. “Unfortunately, there were just no survivors.”
Flight data suggests that the father-daughter duo travelled 180miles from Knoxville when their aircraft plummeted to the ground – just 10miles short of the nearest airport landing.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation.
A local described the horrific scenes to WSMV, stating: “My wife seen the plane come over and crash into the hillside over there.”
After running to the site to see if he could help, Richy Sands recalled: “Just plane all over the place. Just total destruction.”
“Hate to see someone lose their life in something like that,” he added.
The tragedy struck only days after Jenny, known online as TNFlyGirl, shared a final video of her happily flying with her father.
Only a month ago Jenny posted a video of her having to perform an emergency landing due to an “aircraft malfunction” at 4,000ft in the air.
“Are we going to make it?” she chillingly asked her flight instructor after they noticed the plane’s battery had died mid-flight.
The budding aviation influencer managed to remain calm and land the plane perfectly.
“It’s never happened to me before,” she later told her 16,000 subscribers.
“We had to cut this trip short due to the alternator/battery issues as you can see in the video. Later to find out, there were some screws loose on the regulator.”
Jenny frequently filmed her flying excursions with her father – what she called her “aviation journey” – since joining YouTube in 2021.
Her devastated partner Brett Thees wrote on Facebook: “Jenny and her dad were not just daughter/father, they were best friends and did EVERYTHING together!”
The Blalock family said in a statement:
The Blalock family said in a statement: ‘We would like to thank the community for their outpouring of love and support for our family during this unimaginable loss of two precious members of our family, Jenny and Jim (Buck) Blalock.
“Our family is taking great comfort in knowing that they were together when they met our Lord and Savior!
“At this point, we are still trying to process this tremendous loss. We ask that you pray for our family in the days and months ahead.”
Fans of social media creator flooded her YouTube channel with their own tributes.
One wrote: “Sad to hear about this, she was a very good pilot…..rest in peace, blue skies and tailwinds.”
Another said: “Sorry to your family for their loss. RIP to you and your dad, you guys were doing what you love together.”
A third added: “So sad to hear this horrible news. I became a private pilot back in 94 and always loved flying, but it’s so unforgiving if something goes wrong. R.I.P. to you both.”
YouTube @TNFlygirlThe moment Jenny’s plane’s battery died on a flight last month[/caption]
YouTube @TNFlygirlThe influencer and her instructor were forced to make an emergency landing[/caption]
Instagram/865flygirlThe single-engine Beechcraft 35 that the pair were reportedly killed in[/caption]
Only days ago, Jenny posted a final video of her flying with her father
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