NASCAR team owner Rick Hendrick returned home today with wife Linda, after a plane crash yesterday during which he sustained some minor injuries.
Hendrick, 62, Linda, and two pilots were aboard the Gulfstream G150 co-owned by Jimmie Johnson when it crash-landed at Key West International Airport Monday night. Reports indicate the small aircraft ran off the runway at the end of the flight, having experienced a malfunction in the brakes. The plane skidded off the 4,800-foot runway, and wound up in a “safety area” recently added to the landing strip in May.
Johnson spoke to press about the near miss, saying:
“As everybody is aware, there was a brake issue with the airplane landing,” Johnson said. “All four on board are OK and are home back in Charlotte. We are just beyond thankful that everything turned out well with the crash and there weren’t any major injuries down there. It certainly was a scary event — I can only imagine.”
Rick Hendrick sustained a broken shoulder and broken rib during the accident, and wife Linda suffered cuts and bruises. Both pilots were uninjured. Johnson said he spoke with Hendrick after the crash and that folks were pleased no serious injuries resulted:
“It’s been a long night for him — he’s trying to get some rest and we just touched base and I know that he’s OK,” Johnson said. “It’s just nice to hear his voice and hear him say he’s fine and OK and Linda is as well along with the pilots… We don’t have a lot of answers at this point. There’s a lot of really good, smart people working on getting answers to these questions so we can all understand what exactly took place.”
The plane was “largely intact” after the minor crash.
