NTSB finds Learjet tail parts miles from Florida crash site
Debris from the plane's elevator was recovered up to 3.8 miles away, confirming the aircraft broke apart during its nosedive.
By Nour Haddad ·
National Transportation Safety Board member Tom Chapman announced Tuesday that key parts of the Learjet's left elevator were found between 1.3 and 3.8 miles from the crash site in Greenacres. The discovery confirms the tail component was not attached to the aircraft when it struck the ground Sunday afternoon. Chapman stated that the loss of this piece is a vital piece of evidence as investigators determine what caused the plane to lose control.
The Learjet 60 was traveling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas when it crashed. The pilot would not have been able to pull the aircraft out of its nosedive without an intact elevator. Chapman noted that the debris likely broke off during the descent rather than before, as the pieces were found relatively close to the impact zone. Aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti agreed, saying that if the parts had detached at high altitude, they would have landed much farther away.
The flight encountered rapidly developing weather just before the crash. The co-pilot reported ice buildup and severe turbulence as the jet entered a thunderstorm cell. Flight tracking data reviewed by former NTSB member John Goglia suggests the plane leveled off briefly for about eight seconds at 8,000 feet before plunging. Goglia believes the captain may have overstressed the tail during that maneuver, causing the horizontal stabilizer to separate.
Nine people died in the crash, including technology entrepreneur Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, their two young children, and their nanny Ana Maria Ramirez Cetina. The co-pilot, Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, had texted her boyfriend about ice and turbulence ten minutes before impact. During the final descent, she radioed air traffic control, stating the plane was losing control and descending at over 20,000 feet per minute.
The aircraft's captain, Jeff Gregory, 55, was a longtime aviator and a devout Christian. Friends believe his voice was heard reciting the Lord's Prayer during the final radio transmissions. Thomas Noetzel, director of operations for Upper Jets, the charter company that operated the flight, started a GoFundMe campaign to support Gregory's family. Noetzel described Gregory as a close friend and noted that he and one of Gregory's children were graduates of Bob Jones University.
Investigators plan to access the crash crater on Wednesday after heavy rains subside. They expect to find additional critical components of the aircraft. A preliminary NTSB report is scheduled for release in approximately one month. Determining the probable cause of the crash is expected to take more than a year. About 600 residents near the Greenacres site remain displaced, and one person on the ground was reported injured.
Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella paid tribute to Ramirez Cetina, a biomedical engineer who had moved to the United States in January to be closer to her mother. Her sister, Angie Alejandra Ramirez, said she last spoke to her sister moments before she boarded the plane. The family was traveling to the Bahamas when the jet hit the ground with enough force to create a crater before catching fire.
