NTSB says Florida Learjet that killed nine may have broken up mid-air after its co-pilot, 20, texted 'I've got ice'
Dashcam footage of the Learjet 60's impact near West Palm Beach, as Transport Secretary Sean Duffy called the crash "a horrific tragedy.Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras (left), the co-pilot, pictured with pilot Jeff Gregory, whose final recorded words were the Lord's Prayer as the Learjet plunged towards the ground.Anita Maria Cetina (left), and Rachel Reed and Charmi Fehr, three of the nine people killed when the Learjet 60 plunged into a Palm Beach County road at up to 32,000 feet per minute.Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, and their children Emma and Charlie, who were among the nine killed; the crew had reported light icing and requested clearance to climb to 37,000 feet before issuing a mayday call less than 30 seconds later.Aerial footage of crash devastation on Military Trail, Palm Beach, Florida, where investigators warn that recovering wreckage from the water-filled impact crater is the biggest obstacle to establishing whether the black box recorder was even on board.The crash left a crater in Military Trail, igniting a utility pole and scattering burning debris feet from passing cars and nearby homes in Greenacres, Palm Beach County.
The Learjet 60 was travelling at 35,000 feet from Austin, Texas to the Bahamas when it flew into a severe thunderstorm, reported icing and began plunging at up to 20,000 feet per minute. Charter firm Upper Jets confirmed it is cooperating with the NTSB investigation, which warns recovering wreckage from a deep crater in the roadway is its "biggest obstacle."
NTSB member Tom Chapman warned parts of the aircraft may be found some distance from the Palm Beach County impact site.
Among the nine killed were tech entrepreneur Adam Robinson, 45, his wife Helen Sharp, 40, their children Emma, 4, and Charlie, 2, and their nanny Anita Maria Cetina.
Captain Jeff Gregory, 55, was heard reciting the Lord's Prayer over the radio in the plane's final seconds as co-pilot Filgueiras screamed: 'We're going to crash into the ground.'
