Co-pilot Nathalia Filgueiras dies in Learjet crash in Florida
The 20-year-old pilot reported ice and turbulence before the aircraft crashed in Palm Beach County on Sunday.
A Learjet 60 crashed in Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday afternoon, killing everyone on board, according to reports from The Times of India and Hindustan Times. The aircraft was travelling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas when the accident occurred.
Co-pilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, 20, was one of the pilots on the flight, Mathrubhumi reported. Air traffic control audio captured Filgueiras reporting ice accumulation and moderate turbulence, noting the outside air temperature was approximately minus 47 degrees Celsius. She reported the aircraft was descending at 10,000 feet per minute before the rate increased to 20,000 feet per minute.
Flight data from ADS-B Exchange showed the jet lost about 27,000 feet in one minute before the impact. Filgueiras' stepfather, Thiago Corteleti, told the NY Post that she sent a text to her boyfriend at approximately 12:40 p.m., about 10 minutes before the crash, stating she was encountering ice and turbulence.
Filgueiras had been a commercial pilot for nine months and had accumulated around 1,300 hours of flying experience, her family said. She obtained her private pilot’s licence in 2023 at age 17. Her mother, Camila Gadelha Corteleti, told CNN Brasil that Filgueiras was the co-pilot and did not have authority to make flight decisions.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis described the crash site as devastating, stating the aircraft hit the ground with force similar to a missile. The identity of the other pilot and the remaining passengers has not been released. Investigations into the circumstances of the crash are ongoing.