Video: watson/nina bürge
Flames erupt from a jet. People are pounding on the cockpit windows – trying to free the injured passengers.
June 17, 2026, 10:33June 17, 2026, 10:33
Matti Hartmann / t-online
One person died in a plane accident on a highway in the US state of Texas on Tuesday evening (local time). The small jet belonging to a company that rents out machines for private flights and business trips crashed around 10 p.m. in the city of Laredo, which has a population of 260,000, right on the US border with Mexico.
As the AP news agency reported, the twin-engine Cessna Citation Latitude had previously taken off from Los Cabos International Airport in Mexico. There were therefore six people on board.
Video: watson/nina bürge
Plane crash in the USA: “I was afraid of an explosion”
The AP news agency quotes an eyewitness who drove past the burning wreckage with her husband in the car immediately after the accident and stopped. Someone tried to break the cockpit window on the plane. Helpers also tried to break the window from the outside in order to create an escape route for the inmates trapped inside.
First responders tried to get the occupants out of the burning wreckage.Image: keystone
Then the plane door opened. According to the eyewitness, three people who appeared to be very young initially rushed out, then someone appeared outside who appeared to be part of the crew, possibly the pilot. Finally, another crew member presumably followed and tried to pull out an unconscious person.
“It looked like a scene from a movie,” said the eyewitness. “The fire worried me. I was afraid that the plane could explode at any moment.”
So far it is completely unclear why the plane got into distress. NetJets, the company that owned the plane, confirmed the accident. They said they were working with the authorities.
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