It’s been nearly 15 years since the deadly plane crash that Travis Barker was involved in, but there’s no question he will always be affected by the tragedy that occurred. Four of the six people on board the plane were killed September 19, 2008, when the aircraft crashed on takeoff as it departed South Carolina for California. One of those who didn’t make it was Barker’s assistant, Lil Chris Baker, and Kourtney Kardashian paid tribute to her husband's late friend on his birthday, June 5, with a visit to his grave.
Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker both shared an image from Chris Baker’s gravesite, which was adorned with colorful flowers placed around an elaborate headstone that celebrated Baker’s family. The punk rocker included no caption on his post, while The Kardashians star added a simple heart emoji in her Instagram Stories:
Chris Baker was just 29 years old when he died, and he left behind a wife Jessie and son Sebastian, who was a toddler at the time. Three others — pilot Sarah Lemmon, first officer James Bland and Travis Barker’s security guard Charles “Che” Still — were also killed when the plane overran the runway, crashing through a fence and crossing a highway before bursting into flames. Adam “DJ AM” Goldstein was the other survivor; however, he died a year later of a drug overdose.
Travis Barker suffered physically and emotionally from the effects of the plane crash, and he largely credits his wife for getting him back on a plane for the first time since 2008. However, his family also understandably remains affected by his near-death experience, and his children’s fear of flying nearly kept them from attending his and Kourtney Kardashian’s wedding in Italy, Barker revealed in the Hulu special ‘Til Death Do Us Part: Kourtney & Travis.
In previous episodes of The Kardashians, fans got to see how the Lemme founder helped to calm her husband’s fears during takeoff, praying with him and reassuring him that they were OK. Travis Barker suffered third-degree burns on over half of his body in the 2008 tragedy, requiring multiple surgeries and blood transfusions during a painful recovery. In 2019 he opened up about the crash on Joe Rogan’s podcast, telling the host (via The Sun):
When I jumped through the emergency exit when the plane blew up, I was in such a hurry to exit the plane I jumped right into the jet, which is full of fuel. My whole body lit up. I had jet fuel in my whole body. I burped jet fuel for almost three months (after). When I jumped into the jets … I started running … I was ripping off my clothes because that's what my instinct told me to do … but little did I know I was still on fire because I was soaked in jet fuel.
Travis Barker has come a long way, and Kourtney Kardashian has a lot of reasons to be proud of her husband and his courage as he embarks on a world tour with Blink 182, but their Instagram posts are a reminder that Chris Baker and the others who were on the plane that day will never be forgotten.
You can see more of Travis Barker and his wife on new episodes of The Kardashians, which are available each Thursday with a Hulu subscription.
