Some parts of a Learjet 60 began breaking apart before the aircraft slammed into a residential area in Palm Beach County, Florida, killing all 9 people on board, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Monday.
The crash happened around 12:51 p.m. Sunday along South Military Trail, between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue North. The aircraft was traveling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas when it went down, erupting into flames and leaving a large crater in the roadway, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said .
One of the pilots killed in the crash was identified as 20-year-old Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, whose family confirmed her identity to the New York Post.
Filgueiras was serving as the co-pilot and had been working as a commercial pilot for approximately 9 months. She earned her private pilot’s license at just 17 while still in high school.
During a briefing Monday, NTSB officials said there was evidence that parts of the aircraft had separated before it hit the ground. The Learjet was also equipped with a cockpit voice recorder, but officials are still trying to determine whether it remained aboard the aircraft at the time of the crash and whether it can be recovered.
The crew had reported encountering ice and moderate turbulence after departing Austin. The pilots requested permission to climb to 37,000 feet, but less than 30 seconds after issuing a mayday call, the aircraft began descending rapidly. The transmission then became unintelligible.
Officials said icing and turbulence are among the factors being examined, but it is too early to determine what caused the crash.
The NTSB deployed approximately 20 investigators to the scene and is working with the FAA, Learjet representatives and weather and air traffic control specialists.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed Sunday that all 9 people aboard had died. During Monday’s briefing, an NTSB official also said a person in a vehicle near the crash site suffered a leg injury.
Meanwhile, the Palm Beach County medical examiner’s office is working to identify the victims using DNA collected at the scene. Recovering the major wreckage from the crater in the roadway remains one of the biggest challenges facing the investigation.