Victims of Florida plane crash include a 20-year-old copilot, tech entrepreneur and his family

A 20-year-old woman with a pilot's license since her teenage years, along with a tech entrepreneur and his family, were among the nine victims who perished when a small jet crashed and exploded in South Florida, according to family members. The unfortunate incident occurred when the Learjet, operated by co-pilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, crashed near West Palm Beach on Sunday. Filgueiras, who earned her license at just 17 in 2023, was flying from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas.

The deceased included Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, their two young children, Emma and Charlie, and two additional individuals identified as Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr. The identity of the third pilot involved in the crash remains undisclosed. Adam Robinson, a 45-year-old co-founder of Robly, an email marketing platform, and Retention.com, a tech company, was known to be based in Aspen, Colorado.

Adam Robinson's entrepreneurial journey had left a significant impact on Austin, Texas, where he co-founded Robly and Retention.com. Thom Singer, CEO of the Austin Technology Council, acknowledged Adam's contribution to the entrepreneurial fabric of the city. The Palm Beach County School District had even paid for Filgueiras' license through their specialized aviation academy.

In 2023, she had shared a light-hearted anecdote about her youth and capabilities with WPEC-TV, expressing that people sometimes found it peculiar that she could fly planes but not drive a car.

This tragic incident marked the second tech entrepreneur's death by plane crash in Austin this year, following the loss of Joshua Baer in June. Baer, who led a venture capital firm supporting tech startups, also perished in a plane crash.