A father and son—identified as Michael Daly and his father John Daly—were killed Sunday afternoon when their Beechcraft C90 King Air crashed into a vacant truck lot just north of Fort Worth, Texas. The fiery impact involved multiple 18-wheelers and trailers, leaving a towering column of black smoke visible for miles.
The plane, registered N291CC, went down around 1:30 p.m. in the 12700 block of North Saginaw Boulevard, near Avondale, close to Hicks Airfield and not far from Business 287. Witnesses heard a sudden explosion, then watched the aircraft plunge and hit several parked trucks. Surveillance footage from a nearby business captured the final descent before impact.
First responders from Fort Worth, Haslet, Saginaw, and other local fire departments rushed in. Though crews moved quickly, both men were pronounced dead at the scene. Fortunately, authorities say no one on the ground was injured. The blaze sparked by the crash was brought under control after an intense response.
The aircraft belonged to Mobile EHR, Inc., a healthcare-software company founded by Michael Daly. In his professional life, Daly began programming as a teenager in 1992. After entering the workforce in the oil and gas sector, he transitioned into desktop and mobile development, eventually launching an iOS and iPad app company around 2010 focused on medical records software using technologies like .NET, SQL, Silverlight, and Objective-C. He leaves behind a wife and four children.
Though initial reports from local media called the victims “unidentified,” subsequent statements from authorities confirmed their names and relationship. The crash site lies between Fort Worth Alliance Airport and Meacham Airport, west of Dallas/Fort Worth International, in an industrial stretch of Tarrant County.
Federal agencies have been notified. The FAA will lead the investigation, with assistance expected from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), to determine what went wrong. As of now, officials have not released where the flight originated or its intended destination.
This tragic accident has shaken the local community. A nearby wellness center closed for the day out of respect; cafés and businesses reported customers rushing inside after hearing the explosion to call 911. As the investigation proceeds, many are left grappling with the sudden loss of two lives who were not only connected by family but also by the passions and legacies they built.