A National Transportation Safety Board official reported on Tuesday that investigators have found debris from a business jet as far as 3.8 miles from where it crashed on Sunday, November 1. The Learjet slammed into the ground in Greenacres, Florida, killing all nine people on board.
The aircraft was traveling from Austin, Texas, to the West Palm Beach area when it entered a steep nosedive. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) member Tom Chapman stated during a Monday news conference that evidence suggests the plane began breaking apart in midair before impact. A former investigator said key components of the tail may have been lost, which could explain what investigators described as a "missile-like profile."
The victims included tech entrepreneur Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, their two young children, and 20-year-old co-pilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras. Air traffic control recordings indicated that the crew reported the plane was descending at a rate of 20,000 feet per minute shortly after reporting icing and turbulence. One person on the ground suffered leg injuries.
Nearly 600 residents of Greenacres remained displaced from their homes as of Monday. Residents of nearly 80 mobile homes near the crash site were moved to a temporary shelter. Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel G. Flores stated that the county does not yet have a timeline for when these families can return, as investigators must first clear the wreckage and evidence.
NTSB investigators are working to recover a cockpit voice recorder from a crater that has been filled by heavy rainfall. The investigation will examine the mechanical history of the Learjet, the actions of the flight crew, and the impact of weather. AccuWeather reported that some storm clouds reached altitudes of 45,000 feet.
Retired airline pilot John Cox described the reported weather conditions, including a temperature of negative 47 degrees Celsius, as "red flags." NTSB investigator Timothy Monville estimated that recovering the major wreckage from the roadway crater would take several days. A full report on the cause of the crash typically takes a year or longer to complete.