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NTSB Says Fuel-System Damage Preceded Laredo Crash That Killed Joshua Baer

Investigators recovered damaged fuel and engine parts and flight recorders for lab analysis with a final NTSB report expected in about a year.

Overview

  • A Cessna Citation Latitude operated by NetJets crashed on Loop 20 near Laredo on June 16 after an in-flight emergency, killing Austin tech entrepreneur Joshua Baer and injuring six others.
  • Early in the flight the crew reported an unusual low-frequency vibration and a humming noise and consulted NetJets maintenance, after which they were cleared to continue.
  • Later the flight crew received multiple warnings, including a low fuel pressure alert and a low-fuel message, declared an emergency, and sought to divert to Laredo International Airport.
  • While on final approach the right engine flamed out and the left engine failed seconds later, and the pilots attempted an emergency landing on the highway where the jet struck poles and a vehicle and caught fire.
  • NTSB investigators recovered the flight data recorder, cockpit voice recorder and damaged fuel-system and engine components that were sent to an NTSB laboratory for testing; the preliminary report does not assign probable cause and NetJets is cooperating.