Bad weather a ‘major’ focus of Florida plane crash probe

U.S. safety investigators are focusing on weather conditions in their probe of a weekend private plane crash that killed nine people, officials said on Monday. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) detailed the flight path of the Learjet 60, which departed from Austin, Texas on Sunday afternoon and crashed into a residential neighborhood in Palm Beach County, Florida, killing all on board.

The plane, piloted by a 20-year-old pilot and copilot, was en route to North Eleuthera, Bahamas when it encountered trouble. Audio recordings retrieved from air traffic controllers show the crew reported moderate turbulence and managing ice shortly before declaring a mayday, stating they were descending at a rate of 10,000 feet per minute.

While the identities of the victims remain undisclosed pending genetic analysis, authorities identified the copilot as 20-year-old Nathalia Gadelha Filgeiras, a relatively new pilot with over 1,300 flight hours. Filgeiras had recently begun working for a charter plane company in Fort Lauderdale.

The NTSB's investigation is currently trying to determine who was actually at the controls of the plane at the time of the incident. Aircraft maintenance records indicate a cockpit voice recorder was installed on the aircraft, though it is unclear if it was operational during the crash. Additionally, a driver near the crash site sustained injuries, though further details have not been released.

The aircraft in question, a Bombardier Learjet 60, entered service in 2004 and underwent a renovation in 2018. The plane's ownership is registered to LR60271 LLC, a Delaware-based company.