Debris of the jet scattered in many places
The Learjet 60 was flying from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas on Sunday. It crashed in the suburbs of Palm Springs - about 14 km from the Mar-a-Lago resort belonging to President Donald Trump.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said the crash occurred on Military Trail, a six-lane road lined with numerous businesses and restaurants.
As authorities announced at Monday's press conference, scattered remains of the plane were found on playing fields, areas belonging to companies and nearby houses. This may be evidence that the plane broke up before hitting the ground.
A gigantic crater at the crash site
Photos from the crash site show that a giant crater was created at the crash site. It's a street in the suburbs.
Extricating the plane's debris from the crater in the road will be a "tremendous challenge," said Timothy Monville, an aviation safety inspector at the safety commission.
The NTSB said it would investigate the extent to which ice and turbulence may have contributed to the crash. It was confirmed that after take-off from Austin, the crew reported icing and moderate turbulence to the traffic control tower.
We are recording precipitation, please climb to an altitude of 37,000. feet (over 11,000 meters - editor's note), if possible - said crew members.
A mayday signal followed 35 seconds later by the words: "We're running out of time."
NTSB member Tom Chapman said that less than 30 seconds later, the plane began descending and the crew issued a mayday signal. Thunderstorms were reported in the area at this time.
In audio recordings from the air traffic control tower, a crew member can be heard reporting an emergency situation. We are descending at a speed of 20,000. feet (6 thousand meters - editor's note) per minute. We're about to crash to the ground, this person shouts.
35 seconds after the crew broadcast the "mayday" signal, the words "we're running out of time" are heard in the cockpit.
Authorities are also trying to determine whether a cockpit voice recorder was on board at the time of the crash and whether it can be recovered. The NTSB is working with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Learjet officials, as well as meteorologists and air traffic control experts on the investigation.
Who were the victims of the Learjet crash?
9 people died in the disaster - two crew members and 7 passengers. The victims' families issued a joint statement.
On board were tech entrepreneur Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp and their two children - Emma and Charlie - as well as Rachael Reed, Charmi Fehr and Anita Maria Cetina.
According to media reports, the pilot was Jeff Gregory, while the co-pilot was to be 20-year-old Nathalia Filgueiras, who obtained her pilot's license at the age of 17.
“They were a love that will last forever.”
Adam Robinson and his wife Helen Sharp lived in Aspen, Colorado and Austin, Texas. Robinson was a technology entrepreneur who co-founded Robly, an email marketing platform. He also founded Retention.com, a platform that uses technology to connect users of e-commerce sites with their email addresses.
Helen Sharp worked in public relations and was an artist. She dealt with ceramics.
“Helen and Adam were a love that will last forever,” Robinson's brother, Anthony, wrote in a family statement released Monday.
"Their warmth, generosity and gift of making people feel welcome touched so many lives. Their loss will be deeply felt by all who loved them," he said.
In a statement posted on Instagram, ceramics company Sharp wrote: "She was just radiant." Sharp was described as a talented and cheerful person who loved to travel. She grew up in Houston and attended the University of Arizona. She met her husband while staying in Argentina.
“Together they have built a life rooted in family, adventure and love,” the statement read. “Her happiest place was next to Adam and their two beautiful children, as well as their dog Bonnie, who was always by her side (and usually on her lap),” it added.
She got her pilot's license before she got her driving license
Anita Maria Cetina was Emma and Charlie's caregiver. The statement said Cetina "cared for Emma and Charlie with tenderness and devotion and was a true member of the family."
According to East Coast Jets, a private charter company, the pilot of the plane was 55-year-old Jeff Gregory. “We are deeply saddened to learn that Captain Jeff Gregory was among those who lost their lives in yesterday's tragic plane crash in Palm Beach,” a company spokesman wrote in a statement released Monday.
American media identified 20-year-old Nathalia Filgueiras as the plane's co-pilot. Filgueiras' mother, Camila Corteleti, confirmed to American media that her daughter died in the crash.
As Filgueiras' stepfather, Thiago Corteleti, told CNN Brasil, she received her pilot's license at the age of 17, before getting her driving license. According to her family, the young pilot graduated from American Flyers, one of the most prestigious flight schools in the United States, and had over 1,300 hours of flight time under her belt.
In a 2023 interview with local news affiliate CBS News, Filgueiras proudly talked about receiving her pilot's license at such a young age.
I like being different than everyone else. Some people think it's strange that I can fly but can't drive a car, she said.
