Emergency responders work around the wreckage of a private aircraft on Loop 20 near the Clark Boulevard exit in Laredo, Texas, on June 16, 2026. Authorities said the aircraft was carrying six people when it crashed, killing one person.
Jose De La Rosa/Laredo Morning Times
Federal investigators have begun examining the wreckage of the private jet crash that killed Capital Factory founder Joshua Baer, likely focusing on reports that the aircraft was running low on fuel before it went down near Laredo on Tuesday.
Few details about the crash were available Thursday as the National Transportation Safety Board began investigating the accident, NTSB investigator Mitchell Gallo told reporters in an afternoon press briefing.
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Gallo said investigators will examine the wreckage, interview the crew and retrieve information from the aircraft’s flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder. A preliminary report will be released by early July, Gallo said, though the full investigation could take up to a year.
“Right now we’re collecting evidence, so we have to be careful on how we proceed,” Gallo said. “We don’t want to go too fast on the collection, because we may miss something or we may destroy some evidence.”
The crash was reported around 10 p.m. Tuesday on Loop 20 near Clark Boulevard on the east side of the city, Laredo police previously said. The crash shut down highway traffic for nearly 24 hours while investigators worked the scene and crews cleared the wreckage.
The plane was transported off-site for further inspection.
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The flight took off at 6:19 p.m. local time from Los Cabos International Airport in the Mexican city of San José del Cabo, which sits on the southern tip of the Baja California peninsula, Gallo confirmed. Flight plans show the aircraft was bound for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Before the crash, however, the crew attempted to divert to Laredo International Airport, according to FlightAware tracking data.
An emergency responder stands near the wreckage of a private aircraft on Loop 20 near the Clark Boulevard exit in Laredo, Texas, on June 16, 2026. Authorities said the aircraft was carrying six people when it crashed, killing one person.
Jose De La Rosa/Laredo Morning Times
Videos show drivers and first responders attempting to smash the plane’s windshield and pry open its door to rescue the five surviving passengers and crew. The aircraft appeared to be sheared in half, with most of the fuselage resting on its side, engulfed in flames.
The plane was a Cessna Citation Latitude twin jet operated by NetJets, an Ohio-based subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway that sells fractional ownership in private jets.
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Laredo International Airport Director Gilberto Sanchez said Wednesday that the crew’s call to air traffic controllers “mentioned low fuel and a power outage.” Gallo confirmed the crew declared an emergency but said he has “no evidence” the plane experienced mechanical problems during the flight.
Ladd Sanger, a Dallas-based aviation attorney and type-rated Citation pilot, told the American-Statesman that investigators will likely focus heavily on how the jet reportedly ran low on fuel.
“How can you, what appears to be, run a sophisticated business jet out of gas?” Sanger asked. “It’s a very tragic accident, because it’s amazing that with a professionally trained crew, with the procedures that NetJets has in place, and the sophisticated systems on board this airplane, that you can have a situation which appears to be fuel exhaustion.”
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Sanger also said a large, looping turn the aircraft made before attempting to land will be of interest to investigators. The turn, he said, likely caused the plane to lose the momentum it needed to get to the runway.
“The aircraft … probably had the energy to make the airport but for that turn,” Sanger said.
Tuesday’s crash was the first fatal accident for NetJets. In a statement, the company said it is cooperating with the investigation.
Capital Factory CEO and founder Joshua Baer is seen at Port San Antonio in 2022. He died in a plane crash late Wednesday.
San Antonio Express-News file photo
Baer left mark on Austin tech scene
Baer, 50, founded Capital Factory in 2009, and it has since expanded its operations across Texas. The investment firm and business accelerator was one of the first to back humanoid robotics maker Apptronik and has funded companies like Firefly Aerospace, Intuitive Machines, Aalo Atomics, Colossal Biosciences and Creative 3D Technologies. It also helped companies like defense tech firm Saronic Technologies and Neuralink competitor Paradromics launch.
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Baer moved to Austin in 1999 and is remembered as one of the most prominent champions of the city’s tech boom. He co-taught the Longhorn Startup Seminar and Lab at the University of Texas at Austin, helping to mentor student entrepreneurs. He also served as an Entrepreneur in Residence for the Department of Computer Science.
He was also known for his philanthropic pursuits, donating and volunteering with the Austin Anti-Defamation League and establishing the Baer Family Foundation to support disadvantaged children and inclusive entrepreneurship.
He is survived by his wife, Amy, and their three children.
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Staff writers Julianna Duennes Russ, Tony Plohetski and Karoline Leonard contributed to this report.