Overview
- The Learjet 60 crashed into a roadway near Cresthaven in Palm Beach County on Sunday, Nov. 1, killing all nine people aboard and leaving a large crater and a wide debris field.
- Air-traffic recordings show the crew reported light clear ice, moderate turbulence and a request to climb from 35,000 to 37,000 feet before they declared mayday and described steep, overspeed descent rates.
- The NTSB, leading the federal investigation with FAA support, reported preliminary evidence the airplane may have begun breaking up before impact and said weather is a major focus while no probable cause has been determined.
- Local officials evacuated about 600 residents, closed roadways and are managing a difficult on-scene recovery as investigators map debris, recover wreckage and seek cockpit voice and data recorders.
- Families and media have named some victims, including a 20-year-old co-pilot and a family of four, while officials continue formal victim notifications and forensic confirmations and investigators comb wreckage for definitive answers.