Learjet 60 Drops 27,000 Feet in One Minute, Killing Nine in Palm Beach County Crash

A private Learjet 60 business jet lost all nine people on board Sunday afternoon when it plummeted from a cruising altitude of 35,000 feet into a neighborhood in Palm Beach County, Florida. The aircraft struck the ground near Military Trail and exploded, leaving a crater that Gov. Ron DeSantis said looked like a missile going down. The crash occurred at approximately 12:50 p.m. Eastern time, ending a flight from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the deaths in a post on X, labeling the event a horrific tragedy. He stated that the Federal Aviation Administration is dispatching a team to assist the National Transportation Safety Board in its investigation. The NTSB launched a go-team Sunday and planned a media briefing in West Palm Beach for Monday. No cause for the accident has been determined as of this report.

Air traffic control recordings reveal the jet was flying east at 35,000 feet when the pilots reported encountering turbulence, icing, and precipitation. The crew asked to climb 2,000 feet. Minutes before the crash, the pilot reported light, clear ice that is manageable and moderate turbulence to the Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center. The pilot also reported an outside air temperature of minus 47 degrees Celsius, with turbulence bouncing the aircraft by as much as 700 feet.

The situation deteriorated rapidly after the crew reported precipitation. The pilot radioed, "We're descending 8,000, mayday, mayday, we're descending 10,000 feet per minute." The pilot said the aircraft was in an overspeed condition descending 20,000 feet per minute and then said, "We're going to crash into the ground." CBS News reported the pilot also said, "We're out of time." The descent rate went as high as 30,000 feet per minute, pushing the jet beyond its design limits, the AP reported.

Flight tracking data from ADS-B Exchange shows the aircraft dropped 27,000 feet in about one minute before the signal cut off. The FAA said the jet fell from 35,250 feet to 8,750 feet in one minute just before the crash. The plane banked sharply to the right before hitting the ground at a steep angle. CNN noted the jet passed through a stronger storm cell shortly before the descent began, though investigators have not yet determined if the weather played a role.

The crash site is located in Greenacres, a city of approximately 45,000 residents, about seven miles southwest of West Palm Beach. The impact occurred near a busy road, with debris scattering across the area. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis visited the scene and told reporters the crash looked like a missile going down. He noted that no one on the ground was reported killed or injured at the time of his news conference. He praised first responders for their quick action.

Residents in the immediate vicinity described the force of the impact. Anthony Blackmon said 6 he was about 500 feet from the crash and said debris hit his house and the road was on fire. He said, "Debris was everywhere. Debris hit my house. Everything was on fire." Roger Forcelle said the aircraft passed directly over his home, shaking the entire structure. Andrew Mannino reported hearing a boom and feeling the power go out immediately. He smelled smoke and saw a large black cloud rise into the air. Another witness described the aftermath as looking like a meteor hit the ground.

The crash disrupted power and transportation in the area. A woman working nearby said the electricity had been out for about two hours. Palm Beach County closed Military Trail between 10th Avenue North and Purdy Lane/Alameda Drive to all but emergency vehicles. The county advised 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 the road could remain closed for an extended period because of the crater, and officials said the timeline also depends on the federal investigation.

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

The aircraft was a Learjet 60 with the registration N722BD. FAA registry data identifies the owner as LR60271 LLC of Wilmington, Delaware. CNN reported the jet is listed online as available for charter flights. Jim Reynolds, a spokesperson for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, said the jet was a private aircraft and could not say who was on the flight. He said, "This is definitely a tragedy." The jet was bound for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas.

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

The crash is the deadliest ever involving a Learjet 60, according to Flight Safety Foundation data. In 2008, four people died when a Learjet 60 crashed on takeoff in Columbia, South Carolina. NTSB records indicate this is the second deadliest crash in the United States this year, following a skydiving plane crash in Butler, Missouri, in June that killed 12. The brand, originally made famous by Bill Lear, was most recently built by Bombardier, which stopped manufacturing new Learjets in 2021 but continues to support the existing fleet.

The NTSB safety alert issued in January 2024 regarding in-flight icing warned that ice can make managing the airplane's flightpath and airspeed more difficult. It can prevent the airplane from maintaining level flight. The jet passed through an area where the FAA had issued a convective SIGMET, a warning of thunderstorms that threaten aircraft. Heavy rain fell across the region Sunday, and the National Weather Service had a flood watch in effect through Monday afternoon.