Learjet Crashes Near Greenacres Homes, Leaving Nine Dead and Road Buckled

All nine people aboard a private Learjet 60 died Sunday, November 1, when the aircraft crashed into a residential neighborhood in Palm Beach County, Florida. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the death toll, describing the incident as a "horrific tragedy" in a social media post. The Federal Aviation Administration stated that the crash occurred at approximately 12:50 p.m. Eastern time.

The jet had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas, heading for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas. It struck near Military Trail between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue North. Sheriff's officials identified the specific location as Greenacres, a city with a population of roughly 45,000 residents situated about seven miles southwest of West Palm Beach.

Air traffic control recordings indicate the pilots reported encountering turbulence, icing, and precipitation while cruising at about 35,000 feet. The pilot requested a climb of 2,000 feet and reported an outside air temperature of minus 47 degrees Celsius. The aircraft was bouncing as much as 700 feet due to the turbulence, according to the recording captured by LiveATC.net.

The situation deteriorated rapidly after the pilots reported the precipitation. The pilot radioed, "We're descending 8,000, mayday, mayday, we're descending 10,000 feet per minute." Moments later, the pilot reported an overspeed condition with a descent rate of 20,000 feet per minute. The pilot then declared, "We're going to crash into the ground," and reportedly added that the crew was out of time.

Flight tracking data from ADS-B Exchange shows the aircraft dropped 27,000 feet in about one minute before the signal was lost. The FAA reported the jet fell from 35,250 feet to 8,750 feet in that single minute. The descent rate reached as high as 30,000 feet per minute, pushing the aircraft beyond its design limits. The jet banked sharply to the right before impacting the ground at a steep angle.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis visited the crash site and described the scene to reporters. He noted that the aircraft looked like a missile coming down and left a large crater on the side of the road. DeSantis said there were no reports of ground casualties at the time of his news conference. He praised local first responders for their quick response and stated that the debris field stretched a long distance.

Witnesses in nearby vehicles captured video of the jet plunging from the sky and exploding near the roadway. Flames licked at chunks of pavement lining the crater, which was located feet from homes and inches from passing vehicles. Thick black smoke covered the site, and video footage showed the road surface buckling where the jet struck. A woman working nearby reported that the electricity had been out for about two hours.

Anthony Blackmon, a resident approximately 500 feet from the crash, said 6 that debris hit his house and everything caught fire. "I've always seen it on the news, never thought it would happen so close to somebody like how it happened today," Blackmon said. Roger Forcelle stated that he felt the aircraft pass over his home, shaking the structure. "Everybody came out of their houses because you could feel it shaking," Forcelle said.

Andrew Mannino said that he heard and felt the boom, and the power went out immediately. He smelled smoke and observed a large black cloud rising into the air. Another witness described the aftermath as looking like a meteor had hit the ground. County officials said the scene was being treated as a crime scene while federal investigators worked, though no official has alleged that a crime took place.

About 600 people in a nearby mobile home community were forced to leave their homes Sunday night. County officials explained that the crash scene blocks the entrance to the park. Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores, who was the first county official on site, said residents were being sent to two county shelters. "So we have about 600 people that we have to make sure that they have shelter tonight," Flores said. The Red Cross stood by, and Palm Tran buses were ready to transport residents once law enforcement cleared the evacuation.

Palm Beach County closed Military Trail between 10th Avenue North and Purdy Lane/Alameda Drive until further notice. The road was open only to emergency vehicles. The county directed 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 that parts of the road could remain closed for an extended period due to the crater and the ongoing federal investigation.

The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation and launched a go-team Sunday. Investigators were expected to arrive Sunday and Monday morning. The NTSB planned a media briefing in West Palm Beach on Monday. No cause has been determined yet. The FAA is sending a team to the scene to support the NTSB's efforts.

Mary Schiavo, a CNN aviation analyst and former inspector general of the U.S. Transportation Department, said dashcam video would be important to investigators. "That is not a controlled descent," she said. "So at that point, it's clear whatever happened, they had lost control of the plane." Schiavo noted that the 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 whether the jet carried a cockpit voice recorder, as FAA rules require multi-engine jets to carry one only when flown for hire. Records show the jet was offered for charter flights.

Flight tracking and FAA registry data identify the aircraft by the registration N722BD. The FAA registry lists it as a Learjet 60 owned by LR60271 LLC of Wilmington, Delaware. CNN reported the jet is listed online as available for charter. Officials have not stated who operated the flight. Jim Reynolds, a spokesperson for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, said the jet was a private aircraft and could not identify those on board. "This is definitely a tragedy," Reynolds said.

Scattered storms were in the area, and the jet passed through a stronger storm cell minutes before it began to descend. The FAA had issued a convective SIGMET, a warning of thunderstorms that threaten aircraft, for that region. Whether the weather played a part in the crash has not been determined. Heavy rain fell across the region Sunday, and the National Weather Service had a flood watch in effect through Monday afternoon. In January 2024, the NTSB issued a safety alert on in-flight icing, warning that ice can make managing the airplane's flightpath and airspeed more difficult.

This is the deadliest crash ever involving a Learjet 60, according to Flight Safety Foundation data. In 2008, four people were killed when a Learjet 60 crashed on takeoff in Columbia, South Carolina. NTSB records show 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 people. Learjets were most recently built by Bombardier, which stopped making new Learjets in 2021 but still supports the planes in service.