Stevie Ray Vaughan Killed in Helicopter Crash

August 27, 1990

Stevie Ray Vaughan and members of Eric Clapton‘s road crew are killed in a helicopter crash. They had just played at a concert with Clapton at the Alpine Valley Music Theatre in Wisconsin. The helicopter took off headed for Chicago when it crashed into a ski resort. Everyone on board was killed, which included Vaughan, pilot Jeff Brown, agent Bobby Brooks, bodyguard Nigel Browne, and tour manager Colin Smythe. It was foggy at the time of the flight and while the pilot was qualified to fly by instruments in an airplane, he was not qualified in a helicopter. The day before the crash, Vaughan told his band members about a nightmare that he had in which he was at his own funeral and saw thousands of mourners.