On a Sunday afternoon, a small private jet bound from Austin for the Bahamas fell from the sky over Greenacres, Florida, and came to rest in a burning crater beside a busy roadway, taking all nine people aboard with it. It is the kind of sudden loss that reminds us how thin the margin is between the ordinary rhythm of travel and catastrophe, and how quickly a day can divide into before and after. The pilot's last words, relayed through the radio, carried both the struggle to keep control and the knowledge that it was slipping away. Now the question shifts from the scene to the instruments, as
Nine killed as Learjet 60 crashes near Florida roadway; ATC audio captures pilot's mayday call
All nine people aboard the Learjet 60 were killed when it crashed near a roadway in Greenacres, Florida.
Only feet from homes and inches from passing vehicles
Mark
Why does the audio carry so much of this story?
Mimi
Because it records the escalation in real time. The pilot starts with turbulence and ice, then reports descent rates of 8,000, 10,000 and 20,000 feet per minute, and then the line goes dead.
Luke
Careful, though. Those descent figures are what the pilot said on the radio. Whether they match the aircraft's actual data is something investigators will have to check.
Mark
And the videos?
Mimi
Dashcam and roadside footage show the jet nearly vertical, hitting hard and exploding beside the road, close to homes and cars.
Luke
The footage shows how it hit the ground. It doesn't show why it fell.
Mark
Were people on the ground hurt?
Mimi
DeSantis said there were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths on the ground.
Luke
Note the word "immediate." That's an early statement, not a final count.
Mark
So what answers the central question?
Mimi
The NTSB investigation, with FAA support, looking at flight data and cockpit audio.
Luke
Right. Ice and turbulence were reported by the pilot, but no cause has been established yet.
El Pulso
- A Learjet 60 bound for the Bahamas plunged nearly vertically into a busy Palm Beach County roadway at 12:50 p.m. on Sunday.
- The pilot reported worsening turbulence and ice buildup, then screamed a mayday as the descent rate climbed from 8,000 to 20,000 feet per minute.
- Dashcam footage shows the jet slamming into the ground in a fireball, leaving a smoking crater just feet from homes and inches from passing cars.
- Remarkably, no one on the ground was reported hurt, but all nine aboard were killed, and the crash is only a few kilometers from Mar-a-Lago.
- The FAA and NTSB are racing to pull flight data and cockpit audio to determine whether ice, turbulence, or something else drove the jet down.
On a Sunday afternoon, a small private jet bound from Austin for the Bahamas fell from the sky over Greenacres, Florida, and came to rest in a burning crater beside a busy roadway, taking all nine people aboard with it. It is the kind of sudden loss that reminds us how thin the margin is between the ordinary rhythm of travel and catastrophe, and how quickly a day can divide into before and after. The pilot's last words, relayed through the radio, carried both the struggle to keep control and the knowledge that it was slipping away. Now the question shifts from the scene to the instruments, as investigators seek to understand why the descent became unrecoverable.
On Sunday at 12:50 p.m., a Learjet 60 that had left Austin, Texas, bound for the Bahamas came down over Greenacres, Florida, beside a busy Palm Beach County roadway. All nine people on board were killed. The jet landed only a few kilometers from Mar-a-Lago, close enough that the scene felt like a sudden intrusion into an ordinary afternoon.
In the final minutes, the pilot, a woman, told air traffic controllers about worsening weather, turbulence, and ice building up on the aircraft. The exchange moved quickly from her describing moderate turbulence to a mayday call. She reported the jet was descending at 8,000 feet per minute, then 10,000, then 20,000, and asked controllers to declare an emergency. Her last words said the aircraft was going to crash, that they were out of time, and that they were going to die. Then the connection went silent.
Videos from social media and passing dashcams show the jet dropping almost straight down and striking the ground in a large fireball. It left a burning crater, thick black smoke, and flames among broken pavement, while bystanders stood nearby, stunned. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, at the scene, said there were no immediate reports of anyone on the ground being hurt or killed, and described the crash as cataclysmic.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called it a horrific tragedy and said the FAA is sending a team to support the National Transportation Safety Board. Both agencies will investigate. The reporting so far does not explain why the jet fell so fast. Investigators will turn to flight data and cockpit audio to determine what role the ice and turbulence played.
On Sunday at 12:50 p.m., a Learjet 60 fell out of the sky over Greenacres, Florida, and struck the ground beside a busy Palm Beach County roadway. All nine people aboard were killed. The aircraft had left Austin, Texas, bound for the Bahamas, and it came down only a few kilometers from Mar-a-Lago.
The last minutes of the flight were recorded on air traffic control audio, a nearly two-minute exchange between the pilot and controllers. The pilot, a woman, first reported worsening weather, turbulence and ice building up on the aircraft. Over the course of the exchange the situation moved from what she described as moderate turbulence to a mayday call.
She told controllers the jet was descending at 8,000 feet per minute and said "Mayday, Mayday." She asked them to declare an emergency as the rate of descent climbed, first to 10,000 and then to 20,000 feet per minute. Her final words to controllers were that the aircraft was going to crash, that they were out of time, and that they were going to die. Then communication with the jet was cut.
The impact was also caught on camera. Videos circulating on social media, including footage from dashcams in passing vehicles, show the aircraft dropping from the sky, nearly vertical and at high speed, and hitting the ground in a large fireball. It left a burning crater beside the road, and thick black smoke covered the scene.
Afterward, flames flickered around broken chunks of pavement lining the crater while people gathered nearby, stunned. The jet had come down only feet from homes and inches from passing vehicles. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said there were no immediate reports of anyone on the ground being hurt or killed.
DeSantis spoke to reporters at the scene. "It was a cataclysmic plane crash," he said. "It looked like a missile going down and left a big crater on the side of the road."
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy wrote on X that the crash happened in Palm Beach County at 12:50 p.m. and called it a "horrific tragedy." He said the Federal Aviation Administration is sending a team to support the National Transportation Safety Board's investigation. The FAA said in a statement that it and the NTSB will investigate.
The reporting so far does not say what caused the jet to descend so fast. Investigators are expected to examine flight data and cockpit audio to answer that question, including what role the reported ice and turbulence played.
Citas Notables
It was a cataclysmic plane crash. It looked like a missile going down and left a big crater on the side of the road.— Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis
The crash was a horrific tragedy, and the FAA is sending a team to support the NTSB investigation.— Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy (paraphrased)
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