DeSantis calls Palm Beach Learjet crash 'cataclysmic' after nine killed

A private business jet crashed into a residential area in Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday, November 1, killing all nine people on board. The Learjet 60 was traveling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas when it descended sharply from an altitude of 35,000 feet. The aircraft struck the ground near Military Trail, exploding close to a busy roadway and sending debris across the neighborhood.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said all nine people aboard were killed and called the crash a "horrific tragedy" in a post on X. He stated that the Federal Aviation Administration is sending a team to support the National Transportation Safety Board, which is leading the investigation. The FAA reported that the crash occurred at approximately 12:50 p.m. Eastern time. The FAA said nine people were on board and called its information preliminary.

The crash site is located in Greenacres, a city of about 45,000 residents situated roughly seven miles southwest of West Palm Beach. The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said the jet came down near Military Trail between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue North. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis visited the scene and described the crash as cataclysmic. He told reporters that the aircraft looked like a missile coming down and left a large crater beside the road. DeSantis said there were no reports of ground casualties at the time of his news conference.

Witnesses described the crash and its aftermath. Anthony Blackmon, a nearby resident who was about 500 feet from the crash, said debris hit his house and that the road was on fire. Roger Forcelle, another nearby resident, felt the aircraft pass over his home, causing the house to shake. Andrew Mannino reported hearing and feeling the boom and seeing a large black cloud rise into the air. He said the power immediately went out and is still out. Another person who saw the aftermath said it looked as if a meteor had hit the ground. A woman working nearby said the electricity had been out for about two hours.

Air traffic control recordings captured the pilot's communications in the final minutes of the flight. The pilots reported turbulence, icing, and precipitation while flying east at 35,000 feet. They requested to climb 2,000 feet. Minutes before the crash, the pilot informed the Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center that they had light, clear ice that was manageable and moderate turbulence. The outside air temperature was recorded at minus 47 degrees Celsius. The pilot also reported turbulence that was bouncing the jet by as much as 700 feet.

The situation deteriorated rapidly after the request to climb. The pilot radioed, "We're descending 8,000," issued a mayday call and said they were descending 10,000 feet per minute. The pilot then reported an overspeed condition with a descent rate of 20,000 feet per minute. The pilot then said, "We're going to crash into the ground." CBS News reported that the pilot also said, "We're out of time." The FAA said the jet fell from 35,250 feet to 8,750 feet in one minute just before the crash. The descent rate reached as high as 30,000 feet per minute, pushing the aircraft beyond its design limits before it banked sharply to the right and hit the ground at a steep angle.

Weather conditions in the area included scattered storms. The jet passed through a stronger storm cell a few minutes before the descent began. The FAA had issued a convective SIGMET, a warning of thunderstorms that threaten aircraft, for the region. Heavy rain fell across the area Sunday, and the National Weather Service had a flood watch in effect through Monday afternoon. It has not been determined whether the weather played a role in the crash.

Palm Beach County closed Military Trail between 10th Avenue North and Purdy Lane/Alameda Drive until further notice. The road was open only to emergency vehicles. County officials told drivers to use 10th Avenue North and Purdy Lane/Alameda Drive for east-west travel and Haverhill Road and Kirk Road for north-south travel. A county commissioner warned that the road could remain closed for an extended period due to the crater and the federal investigation.

About 600 residents in a nearby mobile home community were required to leave their homes Sunday night. The crash scene blocks the entrance to the mobile home park and is being treated as a crime scene while federal investigators work. No official has alleged that a crime took place. Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores, who represents District 3 and was the first county official at the scene, said residents were being sent to two county shelters. He noted that the Red Cross was standing by and that Palm Tran buses were ready to transport residents once law enforcement allowed the evacuation.

The jet was a private aircraft, and officials had not released the names of the nine people killed or identified how many were passengers and crew. Jim Reynolds, a spokesperson for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, said that the jet was private and that he could not say who was on the flight. He described the event as definitely a tragedy. Flight tracking and FAA registry data identified the jet by its registration, N722BD. The FAA registry lists the aircraft as a Learjet 60 owned by LR60271 LLC of Wilmington, Delaware. The jet is listed online as available for charter flights, and officials have not said who operated the Sunday flight.

Mary Schiavo, a CNN aviation analyst and former inspector general of the U.S. Transportation Department, said that dashcam video would be important to investigators. She stated that the descent was not controlled and that the pilots had lost control of the plane. She noted that the steep dive could have torn parts off the aircraft and that a flight recorder could have been destroyed in the explosion. It is not known whether the jet carried a cockpit voice recorder. FAA rules require multi-engine jets to carry one only when they are flown for hire. Records show the jet was offered for charter flights.

The crash is the deadliest ever involving a Learjet 60, according to Flight Safety Foundation data. In 2008, four people were killed when a Learjet 60 bound for Los Angeles crashed on takeoff in Columbia, South Carolina. NTSB records show this is the second deadliest crash in the United States this year. The first was a skydiving plane crash in Butler, Missouri, in June that killed 12 people. The Learjet brand was made famous by Bill Lear's Lear 23 in the 1960s. The aircraft was most recently built by Canadian manufacturer Bombardier, which stopped making new Learjets in 2021 but still supports the planes in service.

The NTSB said it was launching a go-team and that investigators were expected to arrive Sunday and Monday morning. The board planned a media briefing in West Palm Beach on Monday. No cause for the crash has been determined. The FAA said the jet had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and was bound for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas. The FAA called its information preliminary.