Greg Biffle's estate has been targeted with two wrongful death lawsuits, each for $15 million. Both lawsuits are from the estates of the two pilots killed in a December plane crash.
Videos by FanBuzz
Dennis Dutton was the pilot of the Cessna Citation II at the time of the fatal crash on Dec. 18, 2025. His son, Jack, was the co-pilot at the time of the crash at the Statesville Regional Airport. They both died in the crash, as did Biffle, his wife, their two children, and another individual.
The lawsuits were filed in Iredell County Superior Court in North Carolina. Iredell County includes Mooresville, where Biffle lived. These lawsuits claim that Biffle is "responsible for the airworthiness, maintenance, operation and safety of the Aircraft" as the sole owner of the Cessna Citation II.
The lawsuits claim that Biffle failed to perform the adequate safety checks, failed to maintain the plane in airworthy condition, and failed to ensure that the plane had the sufficient crew. According to the NTSB, both Jack and Biffle were licensed pilots. They just were not qualified to fly this particular Cessna.
The plane took off from Statesville Regional Airport at 10:06 a.m. ET. It began its journey toward Florida before turning toward runway No. 28 at 10:14 a.m. The plane attempted to make an emergency landing at the airport, but it made impact with a light station near the runway.
The Cessna Citation II crashed and burst into flames. Biffle, wife Cristina, son Ryder, daughter Emma, Dennis Dutton, Jack Dutton, and Craig Wadsworth all died.
According to the Jan. 30 preliminary report from the NTSB, Dutton controlled the aircraft as a airline transport rated pilot. Jack held a private pilot certificate with single engine land and an instrument rating.
The report, which took information from the on-board recording devices, said that the pilot-rated occupants "discussed that a thrust reverser indicator light(s) for an unspecified engine was inoperative, but that the thrust reverser for the affected engine was working properly."
Another rear passenger, which the NTSB did not identify in its report, commented that the left engine was producing more power than the right engine.
The Biffle estate has not filed a countersuit as of Friday evening, but this remains a possibility. The estate could claim negligence by the pilots.
Another wrongful death lawsuit could be filed. Nicole Lunders, the mother of Emma and ex-wife of Biffle, filed notice in February that she may file a $10 million claim on behalf of her daughter's estate.
