Six-person business jet crashes on Laredo highway, one dead

A small business jet carrying six people crashed on Loop 20, a highway that circles Laredo, Texas, on Tuesday night, killing one passenger and injuring the remaining five. The aircraft, a NetJets-operated Cessna Citation Latitude, had departed San José del Cabo, Mexico, at about 6:18 p.m. local time bound for Austin before diverting toward Laredo.

Laredo police said the plane reported mechanical problems to the local airport tower shortly before 10 p.m., lost contact with air-traffic control and struck a moving vehicle as it descended, hitting the highway at roughly 600 feet altitude, about two and a half miles short of the runway.

Emergency responders arrived soon after the crash, working to break the windshield and extract passengers from the burning wreckage. Bystanders joined officials in pulling survivors from the aircraft. Five officers who assisted at the scene were later taken to a hospital for injuries sustained during the rescue.

Laredo Police Public Information Officer Jose Baeza confirmed one fatality and said the victims have been transported to a local hospital, while the identities of those on board have not been released. Laredo International Airport Director Gilberto Sanchez attributed the accident to a mechanical failure.

Federal agencies, including the National Transportation Safety Board, the Federal Aviation Administration and the FBI, have been notified and are on site conducting investigations.