Learjet Nose-Dives Into Florida Neighbourhood, Killing All 9 Aboard; Co-Pilot, 20, Identified

A Learjet 60 carrying nine people crashed in Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday afternoon. Everyone on board died. The crash left a crater beside a busy road, just feet from homes. The 20-year-old co-pilot has been identified as Nathalia Gadelha.

Video recorded from passing vehicles shows the jet plunging nose first and exploding into a fireball. No one on the ground has been reported hurt.

“It was a cataclysmic plane crash,” Florida Governor Ron DeSantis told reporters at the scene. “It looked like a missile going down and left a big crater on the side of the road.”

Gadelha earned her pilot’s licence at 17 and had spoken publicly about her pride in achieving her dream of flying. Her family has confirmed her identity. Officials have not released the names of the others on board or said how many were crew and passengers.

The private jet had left Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was bound for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). It was flying east at 35,000 feet when the pilots reported turbulence, icing and precipitation and asked to climb another 2,000 feet.

Air traffic control recordings captured by LiveATC show the pilot calmly describing “light, clear ice that is manageable and moderate turbulence” minutes before the crash. The jet then began a steep dive, first at 10,000 feet per minute and then at up to 30,000 feet per minute, beyond the plane’s design limits, according to air traffic control recordings and flight tracking data. The pilot declared an emergency, reported an “overspeed condition”, and said, “We’re going to crash into the ground.” Flight tracking data from ADS-B Exchange shows the jet fell 27,000 feet in one minute before the data cut off.

Officials have not said what caused the crash.