By MES Dispatch Staff
The Briefing
- A Cessna Citation Latitude twin jet carrying six people crashed on Loop 20 highway near Laredo, Texas, shortly after 10 p.m. Tuesday, killing one person and prompting dramatic rescue efforts by bystanders.
- The aircraft, which had departed from Los Cabos International Airport in Mexico, experienced a reported mechanical failure before crashing near the Laredo International Airport approximately 140 miles southwest of San Antonio.
- Bystanders rushed to the wreckage with a sledgehammer and shovel, while rescue personnel used ladders to access the burning aircraft and extract survivors as five police officers were transported for smoke inhalation treatment.
- The aircraft was owned and operated by NetJets, the private aviation company owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, which offers fractional ownership in jets.
- The investigation into the cause of the crash is ongoing, with the Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board expected to lead the investigation.
LAREDO, TEXAS — A twin-engine business jet crashed on a major highway near Laredo Tuesday night, killing one person aboard and prompting immediate rescue efforts from bystanders and emergency responders who extracted four survivors from the burning wreckage.
The Cessna Citation Latitude aircraft, operating as a NetJets flight, departed from Los Cabos International Airport in Mexico at 6:19 p.m. and crashed on Loop 20 highway shortly after 10 p.m., according to Laredo Police Department investigator Jose Baeza. The aircraft was in contact with Laredo International Airport and reported mechanical problems before losing communication, officials said. The plane came to rest not far from the airport, nearly sheared in half and tipped on its side.
Video footage captured by bystanders documented dramatic rescue scenes as drivers stopped their vehicles and rushed toward the burning aircraft. Two people brought a sledgehammer and shovel to strike the cockpit window and attempt to open the aircraft’s door as thick smoke poured from the fuselage. Zayra Garza, an esthetician who was driving her co-workers home when she encountered the crash, began recording the scene and subsequently saw three people appearing to be teenagers exit the aircraft, followed by a pilot. Another crew member attempted to assist a person who appeared unconscious. A firefighter used a small ladder to climb into the aircraft to rescue the remaining passenger as ground crews directed water from hoses onto the burning wreckage.
The identity of the person who was killed has not been released pending notification of next of kin. Five Laredo police officers were transported to a local hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation injuries. No injuries to ground personnel were immediately reported, though the aircraft struck a parked vehicle during the incident.
The aircraft is operated by NetJets, a private aviation company based in Ohio and owned by Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Laredo International Airport Director Gilberto Sanchez told local media outlets that the plane experienced a mechanical failure but declined to provide additional details pending investigation results. The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board are expected to assume investigation of the crash and its cause.