PALM BEACH COUNTY, Florida — A Palm Beach plane crash killed all nine people aboard a Bahamas-bound business jet Sunday, Nov. 1, with air traffic control recordings capturing the crew’s emergency calls as the aircraft descended rapidly toward a residential neighborhood.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed that everyone aboard the Learjet 60 died. The aircraft crashed near Cresthaven at approximately 12:50 p.m., prompting a federal investigation and the evacuation of hundreds of nearby residents.
The jet had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was heading to North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas, according to the Federal Aviation Administration’s preliminary statement.
The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation, supported by the FAA. Authorities had not publicly identified the victims or determined the cause Sunday evening.
Video recorded by people near the scene showed the jet plunging toward the ground and erupting in flames beside a busy roadway close to homes. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said there were no immediate reports of anyone on the ground being injured or killed.
Emergency calls precede Palm Beach plane crash
Before the crash, the crew reported icing, moderate turbulence and precipitation, according to Flightradar24’s review of tracking data and radio communications.
The flight-tracking service said the crew requested clearance to climb to 37,000 feet while seeking smoother conditions. Shortly after receiving climb instructions, the crew reported a rapid descent and an overspeed condition.
In the radio exchange, a crew member issued a mayday call and reported descending at 10,000 feet per minute. Subsequent transmissions reported descent rates of 20,000 and 22,000 feet per minute.
“We’re going to crash into the ground,” the crew member said.
A later transmission ended with the words: “We’re out of time.”
The publicly circulated audio captures radio communications with air traffic control, rather than a recovered onboard cockpit voice recording.
Flightradar24 identified the aircraft as N722BD, a Learjet 60 manufactured in 2004. Its data showed a brief climb followed by a steep, right-hand descent. The reported vertical rate exceeded 32,000 feet per minute at one point, and the last altitude received by the service was 8,750 feet.
The radio reports and tracking figures document the emergency but do not establish what caused it. Investigators had not determined whether the conditions reported by the crew contributed to the crash.
A separate Learjet 55 crash in Philadelphia on Jan. 31, 2025, involved a medical transport aircraft that went down shortly after takeoff near homes and businesses.
Hundreds evacuated from nearby community
Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores said approximately 600 residents near a mobile home community needed shelter following the crash. Officials were arranging accommodation and other assistance for those displaced.
The Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office closed Military Trail in both directions between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue North. Motorists were advised to avoid the area and use alternate routes while emergency crews worked at the scene.
The FAA cautioned that its initial information was preliminary and subject to change, with further investigative updates to come from the NTSB.
The NTSB said its investigative team would arrive Sunday and Monday morning. A media briefing was planned for Monday, Nov. 2, in West Palm Beach, with the time and location to be announced that morning.
