A Texas tech CEO has been identified as the only person killed after a private jet crashed onto a highway near Laredo, Texas.
Joshua Baer, 50, the co-founder and CEO of Capital Factory, died after the Cessna 680A business jet went down on Tuesday, June 16. His son and two other teenagers survived the crash, along with two pilots.
The plane had taken off from San José del Cabo, Mexico, and was headed to Austin when it crashed just south of Laredo around 10 p.m. local time.
There were six people on board.
Dashcam video reportedly captured the terrifying moment the jet struck a light pole before coming to a stop on Loop 20. Video from the scene appeared to show bystanders rushing toward the wreckage to help those trapped inside. Two people reportedly used a sledgehammer and a shovel to break into the cockpit.
All six people were pulled from the plane, including one person who was unconscious, investigator Jose Baeza of the Laredo Police Department told reporters that night.
Baer’s family later confirmed that his son, who survived the crash, is “okay,” but declined to comment further.
The news of Baer’s death has stunned Austin’s tech and startup community, where he was widely known as a major force behind the city’s entrepreneurial scene.
Rep. Lloyd Doggett paid tribute to Baer, calling him a friend and “a great entrepreneur.”
“He was a driving force through Capital Factory in Austin’s tech story,” Doggett said, adding that Baer helped make Austin the “dynamic, international city” it is today.
Baer launched his first startup in his dorm room while attending Carnegie Mellon University in 1996, according to his LinkedIn profile. He later co-founded Capital Factory with Bryan Chambers and Gordon Daugherty as a startup community designed to help entrepreneurs find investors, customers, and employees.
On LinkedIn, Baer described himself as an “Austinpreneur” and wrote, “I help people quit their jobs.”
Following his death, Chambers shared a heartbreaking tribute to his longtime friend and business partner.
“Texas and the tech community lost a titan,” Chambers wrote. “I’m shocked and heartbroken. Late Tuesday night, I lost a best friend, my greatest mentor, and my business partner in an unimaginable accident.”
Chambers called Baer “the most passionate founder and entrepreneur” he had ever worked with.
“We pushed each other hard and always burned the candle at both ends,” he continued. “But he taught me more than I could ever teach him, and he helped me more than I could ever help him. For that, I will be forever grateful.”
The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation into the crash. As of now, officials have not released additional details about what caused the plane to go down.
Discover more from True News Media
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.