In the moments before Greg Biffle’s crash, a chilling message gave a glimpse of the gravity of the situation. Biffle’s mother-in-law (Cathy Grossu) has revealed that Biffle’s wife, Cristina, texted her only minutes before impact that they were in trouble. While the text offered no details about what had gone wrong, federal authorities soon confirmed that an investigation was underway, and several possible factors have since emerged.
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Preliminary reports indicate that Biffle’s aircraft struck the approach lights approximately 1,800 feet short of the runway before skidding across the infield with flames trailing behind it. Aviation podcaster Max Trescott later highlighted an anomaly in the ADS-B flight data that may point to an altimeter malfunction prior to the aircraft turning back.
According to Trescott, the data showed not a routine fluctuation but a sudden spike. In a span of just 1.64 seconds, the aircraft appeared to climb 1,374 feet, an abnormal movement that immediately raised red flags.
Trescott further noted that the altitude had remained unchanged for the 34 seconds leading up to that spike, strengthening the suspicion that something was amiss with the altimeter.
While he emphasized that such an issue likely did not directly cause the crash, he also acknowledged that its role in triggering subsequent events has not been publicly addressed. For now, both the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Aviation Administration continue to examine the sequence of events of Biffle’s plane crash.
“I discovered that it was more than a jump in altitude. It was a spike in the data. The ADS-B data shows that in 1.64 seconds, the aircraft climbed 1,374 feet,” he said on the podcast.
Another theory has surfaced from within the racing community. NASCAR veteran Kenny Wallace suggested that an engine failure may have set the chain reaction in motion. In Wallace’s view, the aircraft may have lost a motor and begun to experience significant drag.
Although planes can typically remain airborne on a single engine, Wallace speculated that with the flaps deployed, horsepower reduced, and drag increased, the aircraft simply could not stretch the glide far enough to reach the runway. At this stage, officials have not released a definitive cause. Until the investigation reaches its conclusion, speculation continues among fans and insiders, each theory reflecting an attempt to make sense of a devastating loss.
Biffle died in the crash alongside his wife Cristina, daughter Emma, son Ryder, and three others. The aircraft went down at Statesville Regional Airport, north of Charlotte, North Carolina, on December 18, 2025.
The tragedy also reopened a painful portion in the sport’s history. Aviation-related deaths have long impacted NASCAR, with airplane and helicopter crashes claiming the lives of several notable figures over the decades. Biffle’s passing now joins that somber list, because it seems over the years the danger has followed the sport not only on the track, but in the skies as well.
