- Location: Laredo, TX
- Accident Number: CEN26FA228
- Date & Time: June 16, 2026, 22:00 Local
- Registration: N523QS
- Aircraft: TEXTRON AVIATION INC 680A
- Injuries: 1 Fatal, 1 Serious, 5 Minor
- Flight Conducted Under: Part 91 subpart k: Fractional
https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-repgen/api/Aviation/ReportMain/GenerateNewestReport/203191/pdf
https://registry.faa.gov/aircraftinquiry/Search/NNumberResult?NNumberTxt=N523QS
On June 16, 2026, at 2200 central daylight time, a Textron Aviation Inc 680A, N523QS, sustained substantial damage when it was involved in an accident in Laredo, Texas. The captain received serious injuries, the first officer received minor injuries, one passenger was fatally injured, and three passengers received minor injuries. One person in a moving vehicle received minor injuries. The airplane was operated by NetJets as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 Subpart K fractional ownership flight.
According to the flight crew, early in the flight, they noticed an unusual vibration, which they had not experienced before. They contacted the NetJets Flight Operations Duty Manager (FODM) via telephone and during that initial conversation, the flight crew described the vibration as “a low frequency vibration and a humming noise… it sounds like a fan is on… you can feel it in the dashboard…it was on steady during the climb, but it is gone now.” NetJets maintenance control then joined the call, and the captain provided an update that the vibration “was intermittent for a while and now it is gone.” During the discussion, the flight crew received a Crew Alerting System (CAS) message related to the Air Data Computer (ADC), “BOTH ON ADC 1.” The maintenance controller suggested that the vibration might be caused by an avionics cooling fan in the forward instrument panel. This idea was reinforced by the CAS message. The captain reported that at that time “there are no indications anywhere of anything abnormal on the synopsis pages… the vibration is cycling on and off.” The captain asked, “I don’t know if that’s related? Could that be ADC related to the fan?”
The crew accomplished the Quick Reference Handbook procedure for the CAS message, and the message cleared. After further discussion with the maintenance controller and FODM, it was determined that the flight could safely proceed to its planned destination and write-up the vibration once the flight was completed.
As the airplane approached the US and Mexico border, the flight crew received a “FUEL BST PUMP ON R” CAS message, which indicated that the right fuel system had low fuel pressure.
The message was followed a few seconds later by a “FUEL PRESS LOW R” CAS message, which indicated that the right fuel system pressure was low. About three minutes later, two more CAS messages were displayed: “ELEC TRU FAIL R” and “WSHLD HEAT INOP R”, and about 11 minutes later, a “FUEL LEVEL LOW R” message was displayed.
The flight crew declared an emergency with the Monterrey Area Control Center (ACC) and Monterrey ACC handed the flight off to Houston Air Route Traffic Control Center (ARTCC). On the initial check-in with the Houston ARTCC, the flight crew reported a generator failure and “multiple other failures” issues including “fuel level low”. They requested to divert to Laredo International Airport (LRD), Laredo, Texas, and were cleared to LRD via radar vectors. When asked if they were ready for the approach or if they needed time to execute checklists, the flight crew stated that they were ready and requested a visual approach to a 5-mile final for runway 36L.
Due to the airplane’s high altitude, the Houston ARTCC vectored the airplane with a right 270- degree turn to establish it on a 14-mile final to runway 36L. While the airplane was on final approach, the right engine flamed out, followed a few seconds later by the left engine. The first officer, who was the pilot monitoring, asked the LRD air traffic control tower (ATCT); “is there a field off to our right?” The LRD ATCT replied “negative, there are no other fields next to you.” The first officer asked, “are there any open pastures or fields off to our right?” LRD ATCT replied, “It’s just going to be the main highway, and that’s just about it.”
The flight crew maneuvered the airplane to touch down on the northbound lanes of the Bob Bullock Loop, about one mile southeast of the airport. Videos from several security cameras and doorbell cameras were obtained, which showed two instances of fire flaring up around the airplane as it was on final approach. As the airplane touched down in the northbound lanes of traffic, it sheared off several light poles, struck a vehicle, and came to rest straddling the righthand edge of an overpass. The airplane fuselage rolled onto its right side with the rear cabin emergency exit on the ground and the main cabin door exit oriented upward. The main cabin door was eventually opened, and five occupants egressed via this exit. The airplane sustained substantial damage to the fuselage, empennage, and both wings.
The airplane wreckage was initially recovered to a secure hangar at LRD for preliminary examination. During the examination, flight control continuity was established for the ailerons, elevator, and rudder. Further examination revealed that the right engine fuel pressure switch (part number 9914488-2) was found separated from the fuel tube assembly (part number 6956100-118) and the fuel tube assembly was fractured adjacent to the weld joint for the attachment tube leading to the fuel pressure switch as shown in Figure 1. Multiple P-clamps on the fuel tube assembly were also found fractured as shown in Figure 2.
The right engine starter generator (part number 9914685-1; model number 23291-005; serial number P3825) was manufactured by Safran in October 2023. The starter generator was missing multiple screws from the outer housing as shown in Figure 3. The starter generator had 57.2 hours of time remaining since its last overhaul that was performed on April 25, 2025; the overhaul interval was 1,200 hours.
Upon removal of the starter generator, the starter generator shaft was found bent, the cooling fan was fractured, and multiple cooling fan blades and ball bearings were found when the generator was removed. The cooling fan shroud also contained circumferential scoring marks.
The fuel tube assembly, starter generator, and multiple components were sent to the NTSB Materials Laboratory in Washington, DC, for further examination.
The airplane was equipped with a flight data recorder and a cockpit voice recorder. Both units were sent to the NTSB Recorders Laboratory in Washington, DC, for further examination and download of pertinent data.
The airplane wreckage was relocated to a secure facility for further examination.
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