NTSB: No cause identified yet in fatal Laredo jet crash

The National Transportation Safety Board has entered the preliminary stage of its investigation into the jet crash in Laredo that killed a tech CEO and injured five others. Mitchell Gallo, an NTSB air safety investigator, said Thursday that investigators have not determined what caused the aircraft to attempt an emergency landing before crashing onto Loop 20. Gallo arrived in Laredo from Kansas City on Wednesday and spent hours examining the wreckage before it was moved from the highway. While officials with the Laredo International Airport and Laredo Police Department have said the aircraft reported mechanical difficulties before the crash, Gallo said investigators have not yet identified a cause. “We need to collect the basic data and then kind of funnel it into a tighter scope,” he said. “In my view there is nothing to point to at this point.” Since arriving in Laredo, investigators have focused on multiple areas of the inquiry, including aircraft systems and flight operations. According to Gallo, the investigation will rely on interviews, physical evidence and data recovered from the aircraft's cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder. “We don’t look at one piece of evidence. We combine the different pieces,” Gallo said. “The cockpit voice recorder is going to be read out tomorrow.” The flight data recorder captures information such as aircraft speed, engine parameters and other operating conditions. Investigators will compare that data with evidence collected at the crash scene. “If there’s an indication of a problem with the flight data recorder, we’ll then have to go back to the aircraft and find what’s causing that,” he said. The Cessna Citation Latitude involved in the crash has since been moved to a hangar at Laredo International Airport off Maher Avenue, where investigators are conducting what Gallo described as a field study. The process includes extensive photography, documentation and exterior inspections of the aircraft. Gallo said more in-depth examinations will take place later in the investigation as evidence continues to be collected and analyzed. “Right now, it’s collecting evidence, so we have to be careful how we proceed,” he said. “We don’t want to go too fast in the collection because we may miss something or we may destroy some evidence.” According to Gallo, investigations of this nature often take a year or longer because of evidence collection, field investigations, testing and laboratory analysis. “We try to get to the root cause of the accident,” Gallo said. “We’ll have a factual report in a year, and then it’ll be followed by a final report. The final report will have the analysis and hopefully the cause.” For now, investigators remain focused on gathering background information and documenting evidence. “That’s further down the road. Right now we’re trying to get background information,” he said. Part of that effort includes reviewing photos and videos submitted by witnesses to the Laredo Police Department. Residents are also encouraged to submit photos or video directly to the NTSB through its website or by emailing [email protected] and referencing case number CEN26FA228. Gallo said a preliminary report is expected to be released within 15 days and will be available on the NTSB website.