Teary Travis Barker recalls begging friends to kill him after plane crash

Ayeesha WalshThu, August 13, 2026 at 8:55 PM UTC

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Travis was left begging visitors to kill him after the horror crash -Credit:Hulu

Travis Barker broke down in tears as he opened up about surviving the horrific 2008 plane crash that claimed the lives of two of his close friends.

On September 19, 2008, the private jet carrying the Blink-182 drummer suffered a blown tire and then burst into flames. The Learjet 60 smashed through a fence at a South Carolina airport, careered across a highway, and ultimately exploded.

Two pilots, along with Travis' personal assistant Chris Baker and bodyguard Che Still, were killed in the devastating crash. The only other survivor was Travis' close friend and collaborator, Adam "DJ AM" Goldstein. However, he died in August 2009 from an accidental drug overdose, with cocaine and medication prescribed to help him deal with the aftermath of the crash reportedly found in his system.

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Travis has now revisited the devastating tragedy in his new Hulu/Disney+ documentary, Louder Than Fear, revealing that he became suicidal after the accident and even begged friends to kill him while he recovered in hospital. The drummer suffered horrific injuries in the explosion, with 65 percent of his body covered in third-degree burns.

He also suffered multiple broken ribs and a fractured back in four places. Travis recalled, "I couldn't see my kids because 65 percent of my body was an open wound. I was handling that miserably.

Travis broke down in tears in the documentary -Credit:Hulu

"I was suicidal in the hospital and I was there for another three and half months and had 27 surgeries," he revealed, confessing that he promised friends he would transfer them any amount of money they wanted if they would put him out of his misery.

The musician also became emotional as he remembered the conversation he had with his father before boarding the flight, after developing a bad feeling about the small plane they had chartered. He said, "I said, "if something happens make sure everything's cool with the kids. That was definitely emotional for whatever reason. I just said 'I have a weird feeling.'"

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Chris Baker and Che Still died in the crash, along with both pilots -Credit:Hulu

Travis also revealed how he managed to escape the doomed aircraft, explaining that he had almost fallen asleep before takeoff after taking a mixture of drugs and alcohol. Thankfully, he was still awake when the plane began moving.

A lifelong nervous flier, Travis said he always sat near the emergency exit and recalled hearing "loud, gunshot-like noises" moments before the crash. He recalled, "I feel it getting very rough, I guess at this point the landing gear had blown up. The belly of the plane is basically on the ground skidding and it catches fire.

"The plane attempted to take off and go into the air, and then we'd go down, go into the air, go down and we end up hitting an embankment. Just fire and chaos everywhere. AM was knocked out, he'd hit his head, so I grabbed him and I shook him and he woke up, tried to get in front of him and the lower parts of my arms caught fire.

DJ AM died after mixing cocaine with prescription drugs -Credit:WireImage

"I opened the emergency exit and jumped out right into the jet where all the fuel is, then my whole body caught fire. I'm running and the fire won't go out, I stop, drop and roll and AM came out and he patted my feet off fire. 10 seconds later the plane blows up."

Travis vowed never to fly again following the crash and was stunned when AM managed to board a plane just a couple of weeks later after recovering from relatively minor burns. It was later revealed that AM had begun turning to drugs to cope with the trauma of the crash before dying from an accidental overdose 11 months later.

The devastating crash left Travis traumatized -Credit:Tribune News Service via Getty Images

Travis said, "After AM passed it was beyond difficult to relate to anybody. I really had no one, I would exhaust post-traumatic doctors and I would hit walls constantly. I definitely had feelings of survivor guilt, I was beating myself up, why am I here and everyone else isn't? I had to believe I was still here for a reason."

Travis credited his children, Landon and Alabama, and stepdaughter Atiana, whom he shares with his ex-wife Shanna Moakler, with helping him stay on track during his recovery. He said, "My kids really kept me together. It was the best thing for my recovery and to give me strength. I flushed my painkillers down the toilet - I was not going to fail my kids."

If in the United States, you can dial the 24/7 National Suicide Prevention hotline at 1-800-273-8255 or go to 988 Lifeline.

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Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Entertainment”