Learjet 60 Kills Nine After 27,000-Foot Plunge Into Palm Beach Road

Nine people died when a Learjet 60 business jet plummeted 27,000 feet in roughly one minute and struck a residential area in Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday, November 1, 2026. The aircraft, which departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and was bound for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas, hit the ground near Military Trail in Greenacres before exploding. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed the fatalities, describing the incident as a horrific tragedy in a post on X. The Federal Aviation Administration stated the crash occurred at approximately 12:50 p.m. Eastern time.

The crash site is located between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue North, about four miles south of the West Palm Beach airport, which was renamed President Donald J. Trump International Airport earlier this year. Greenacres is a city with a population of roughly 45,000, situated southwest of West Palm Beach. Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office officials placed the crash in Greenacres. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis visited the scene and described the descent to reporters as looking like a missile coming down, noting the jet left a large crater on the side of the road.

Officials have not released the names of the nine people killed, nor have they said how many were passengers and how many were crew. Jim Reynolds, a spokesperson for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, told the Associated Press that the jet was a private aircraft, and could not say who was on the flight. The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation and said Sunday it was launching a go-team. Investigators were expected to arrive Sunday and Monday morning, and the NTSB planned a media briefing in West Palm Beach on Monday. No cause for the crash has been determined yet.

Air traffic control recordings indicate the pilots reported light, clear ice, moderate turbulence, and precipitation before the sudden descent. The pilot informed the Miami Air Route Traffic Control Center that the aircraft was experiencing an outside air temperature of minus 47 degrees Celsius. Turbulence was bouncing the jet by as much as 700 feet. After requesting a climb of 2,000 feet, the pilot radioed a mayday call, stating the jet was descending at 10,000 feet per minute before reporting an overspeed condition while descending at 20,000 feet per minute. The pilot also stated, "We're out of time," according to CBS News.

The FAA said the jet fell from 35,250 feet to 8,750 feet in one minute just before the crash. The descent rate peaked at 30,000 feet per minute, pushing the aircraft beyond its design limits. The plane banked sharply to the right before impacting the ground at a steep angle. CNN reported that scattered storms were in the area, and the jet passed through a stronger storm cell minutes before the descent. The FAA had issued a convective SIGMET warning of thunderstorms in the region. The National Weather Service had a flood watch in effect through Monday afternoon due to heavy rain.

Witnesses captured video of the jet plunging from the sky, striking near the roadway, and exploding. Flames surrounded chunks of pavement lining the crater, which was feet from homes and inches from passing vehicles. Thick black smoke covered the site, and WPBF video showed the road buckled where the jet hit. Anthony Blackmon, a resident about 500 feet from the crash, told NBC 6 that debris hit his house and the road was on fire. Roger Forcelle said he felt the aircraft pass over his home, shaking the house, and noted the crash was less than half a mile from where he lives. Andrew Mannino told CNN that the power went out immediately and he smelled smoke, seeing a large black cloud rise into the air.

About 600 residents in a nearby mobile home community were required to leave their homes on Sunday night. The crash scene blocks the entrance to the mobile home park, and authorities are treating the area as a crime scene while federal investigators work. No official has alleged that a crime took place. Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores, who represents District 3 and was the first county official at the scene, said residents were being sent to two county shelters. The Red Cross was on standby, and Palm Tran buses were prepared to carry residents once law enforcement allowed the evacuation.

Palm Beach County closed Military Trail between 10th Avenue North and Purdy Lane/Alameda Drive until further notice, limiting access to emergency vehicles only. The county directed drivers to use 10th Avenue North and Purdy Lane/Alameda Drive for east-west travel, and Haverhill Road and Kirk Road for north-south travel. A county commissioner warned that parts of the road could remain closed for an extended period due to the crater, with the timeline dependent on the federal investigation. DeSantis said the debris field stretched a long distance.

Mary Schiavo, a CNN aviation analyst and former inspector general of the U.S. Transportation Department, stated that dashcam video will be important to investigators. She noted that the descent was not controlled, indicating the pilots had lost control of the plane. The steep dive could have torn parts off the aircraft, and a flight recorder may have been destroyed in the explosion. It is unknown whether the jet carried a cockpit voice recorder. FAA rules require multi-engine jets to carry a voice recorder only when flown for hire, though records show the jet was offered for charter flights.

Flight tracking and FAA registry data identify the jet by its registration, N722BD. The FAA registry lists the Learjet 60 as owned by LR60271 LLC of Wilmington, Delaware. CNN reported the jet is listed online as available for charter. Officials have not stated who operated the flight on Sunday. The crash is the deadliest ever involving a Learjet 60, according to Flight Safety Foundation data. In 2008, four people were killed when a Learjet 60 bound for Los Angeles crashed on takeoff in Columbia, South Carolina.

NTSB records show this is the second deadliest crash in the United States this year. In June, a skydiving plane crash in Butler, Missouri, killed 12 people. Learjet, the brand made famous by Bill Lear’s Lear 23 in the 1960s, was most recently built by Canadian manufacturer Bombardier. Bombardier stopped making new Learjets in 2021 but still supports the planes in service. The FAA is sending a team to the scene to support the NTSB’s investigation. No cause has been determined.

The jet was flying east at about 35,000 feet when the pilots reported turbulence and icing. The pilot asked to climb 2,000 feet, but the situation changed rapidly. The aircraft experienced an overspeed condition while descending at 20,000 feet per minute. The pilot then said: "We're going to crash into the ground." The descent rate reached as high as 30,000 feet per minute, pushing the jet beyond its design limits, and the jet exploded after hitting the ground near the roadway.