Learjet 60 Plunges From Sky, Killing All Nine Crew Members in Florida

A private business jet carrying nine people crashed into a South Florida neighborhood on Sunday, killing everyone on board.

The aircraft, a Learjet 60, departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was headed to the Bahamas when it struck the ground in Palm Beach County at 12:50 p.m. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the death toll on social media, describing the incident as a horrific tragedy. The jet exploded into a fireball near a busy roadway, leaving a crater in the pavement and sending thick black smoke rising into the rain-soaked sky.

Air traffic control recordings show the pilot reported light ice and moderate turbulence while cruising at 35,000 feet. The pilot requested a climb of 2,000 feet to avoid precipitation. Minutes later, the plane entered a steep dive, descending at rates that exceeded its design limits. Flight tracking data indicated the aircraft lost altitude at 10,000 feet per minute, then 20,000, and finally 30,000 feet per minute. The pilot declared an emergency and issued distress calls before the jet banked sharply to the right and hit the ground.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis visited the scene and told reporters there were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths among people on the ground. He described the event as a cataclysmic plane crash that looked like a missile going down. The crash site is in Greenacres, a city of 45,000 located about seven miles southwest of West Palm Beach. Car owners recorded video of the aircraft plunging from the sky just feet from homes and inches from passing vehicles.

Palm Beach County authorities evacuated approximately 600 people from a nearby mobile home community while federal officials began their investigation. The road at the crash site remains closed until further notice. The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the probe, with the Federal Aviation Administration sending a team to support the effort. NTSB investigators were expected to arrive at the site on Sunday and Monday. A media briefing is scheduled for Monday in West Palm Beach.

Aviation safety expert Steve Arroyo noted that icing and turbulence could have caused the plane to stall while cruising. He said investigators would consider how the pilot responded to the reported weather conditions but would not rule out any factors at this early stage. The jet was a private aircraft, according to Jim Reynolds, a spokesperson for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. Authorities have not yet released the names of the people on board. The National Weather Service had a flood watch in effect through Monday afternoon due to excessive rainfall in the region.