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Plane CrashesVersion 3

Five Killed in Cessna 421C Crash Near Wimberley, Texas

NBC DFW reported that all five aboard a flight from Amarillo to New Braunfels died in a crash in the Texas Hill Country late on April 30, 2026; the cause has not been determined.

2 reports on this incident · first at Aug 7, 2026, 9:30 a.m. ET

By AI ReporterFirst reported May 1, 2026, 7:20 a.m. ETUpdated Aug 17, 2026, 9:52 a.m. ET
people died when a crashed near , Texas, at on April 30, 2026, according to NBC DFW. The outlet reported that one crew member and passengers were killed, in total, and that those aboard were members of the Amarillo Pickleball Club travelling to a tournament. NBC DFW reported the aircraft took off from Amarillo bound for New Braunfels National Airport, and that a second plane travelling to the same event from Amarillo landed safely at New Braunfels. The accident record identifies the aircraft as a registered . Aircraft registry records list the serial number as 421C0242 and the aircraft as registered in the United States. The registry lists the registered owner as Investor Resourses Group Llc Dba; the owner of record is not necessarily the operator of the flight, the pilot, or otherwise connected to it. NBC DFW reported that a controller said on air traffic control audio that the plane began to move erratically and that its track disappeared from the scope. The outlet reported that at least one pilot in the area confirmed the aircraft's emergency locator device had emitted a distress signal, and that the controller called 911. Stacey Rohr, a resident living nearby, told NBC DFW she heard a crash and felt everything vibrate. The National Weather Service said it was mostly cloudy in the New Braunfels area shortly before the crash, with a thunderstorm two hours later, according to NBC DFW. Weather observations recorded at San Marcos Regional Airport (KHYI), 15.9 miles from and minutes from the reported time of the crash, show wind from 10 degrees at 13 knots, visibility 10 statute miles, an overcast layer at 1,100 feet and a temperature of 67°F; the coded observation also notes distant lightning to the southeast. Those are instrument readings at a nearby field, not a statement by anyone about what happened. Geographic reference data places in Hays County, Texas, with the settlement itself at an elevation of 879 feet; the elevation of the crash site is not given. The cause has not been determined. The accident record lists the National Transportation Safety Board as investigating. NBC DFW also reported that federal authorities were leading the investigation, attributing that to a person the outlet identified only as Ray; the reporting available here does not say what position Ray holds or in what capacity Ray spoke. Separately, NTSB database records list 33 other cases involving the , in a database that begins in 2008, of which 18 involved a fatality; that count is a matter of record and says nothing about the cause of this crash.

Earlier reports

  1. Aug 7, 2026, 9:30 a.m. ETFirst report

    Five Killed in Cessna 421 Crash Near Wimberley, Texas

    Five people aboard a Cessna 421 were killed when the aircraft crashed near Wimberley, Texas, at about 4:03 a.m. local time on May 1, 2026, according to the accident record. The event is still developing, and the National Transportation Safety Board investigation is open.

    The accident record lists five people on board and five fatalities, gives the aircraft type as a Cessna 421 and the registration as N291AN, describes the aircraft as destroyed, and classifies the flight as a Part 91 general aviation flight. The cause has not been determined.

    Aircraft registry records list N291AN as a Cessna 421C, serial number 421C0242, registered in the United States, with the registered owner recorded as Investor Resourses Group Llc Dba; the owner of record is not necessarily the operator, the pilot, or otherwise connected to the flight.

    Weather observations recorded at San Marcos Regional Airport (KHYI), 15.9 miles away and seven minutes from the reported time, show wind from 30 degrees at 14 knots, visibility 8 statute miles, an overcast ceiling at 800 feet, light rain and 63°F. The coded observation also noted distant lightning to the southeast. These are instrument readings only and say nothing about what happened.

    Geographic reference data places Wimberley in Hays County, Texas, at a settlement elevation of 879 feet, 3.2 miles west of Restoration Ranch Airport (70XS), 3.6 miles west-southwest of White Wings Airport (3TS1) and 4.6 miles south-southeast of Mount Sharp Airpark (TT35). The NTSB database, which begins in 2008, contains 33 other cases involving the Cessna 421C, of which 18 involved a fatality; that count is a matter of record and says nothing about the cause of this accident.

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Reference data

From aircraft and geographic registries, not from the news sources. Registry records can be out of date, and describe the aircraft and the place only — they say nothing about what happened.

Registration
N291AN
Type
Cessna 421C
Registered owner
Investor Resourses Group Llc DbaThe owner of record is not necessarily the operator, the pilot, or otherwise connected to the flight.
Terrain elevation
879 ft
Nearest aerodrome
3.2 miles W of Restoration Ranch Airport (70XS)

Sources

Revision history

  1. Version 317 Aug 2026, 13:52current

    Repaired the garbled weather sentence, restoring the 67°F reading and the distant-lightning note, and tightened the paragraph on the unidentified speaker.

  2. Version 37 Aug 2026, 13:30current

    No new facts; wording and headline tightened, no substantive changes.

  3. Version 217 Aug 2026, 13:23

    Removed the unsupported description of Ray as "a county official" and instead introduced the speaker before the attribution: NBC DFW is named as the outlet, Ray is presented as a person the outlet identified by that name only, and the story states plainly that no role or capacity for the speaker is on the record. Split the closing paragraph so the NTSB accident-record attribution and the NBC DFW attribution stand separately. All figures, the registration N291AN, the weather readings and the NTSB database counts are unchanged.

  4. Version 25 Aug 2026, 20:37

    Corrected the bearings to nearby aerodromes to match the geographic reference data and removed decoded figures from the raw weather observation.

  5. Version 117 Aug 2026, 13:10

    First published.

  6. Version 15 Aug 2026, 16:04

    First published.

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