A Learjet 60 crashed in Greenacres, Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday afternoon, November 1, after entering a steep descent shortly before impact.
Videos shared on social media show the aircraft in a steep downward trajectory before striking the ground and exploding. The impact opened a large crater at the crash site.
According to the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), nine people, including passengers and crew, were aboard the aircraft. Emergency crews secured the area as authorities began investigating the circumstances of the accident.
The aircraft has been identified as Learjet 60 N722BD. The business jet had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was flying to North Eleuthera in the Bahamas.
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Rapid descent
Flightradar24 data show an abrupt change in the aircraft's flight path during its final moments. At 17:48 UTC, the Learjet was at 35,250 feet (10,744 meters), traveling at a groundspeed of 437 knots (809 km/h) and climbing at 1,472 feet per minute.
Moments later, tracking data showed N722BD at 28,950 feet (8,824 meters), with its groundspeed increased to 505 knots (935 km/h) and a descent rate of nearly 20,000 feet per minute.
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By 17:49 UTC, the aircraft's recorded altitude had fallen to 8,750 feet (2,667 meters). The sequence indicates that the Learjet entered an extremely rapid descent before the crash, consistent with videos recorded from the ground.
It is not yet known what caused the abrupt change in the aircraft's flight path.
Learjet 60
The Learjet 60 was developed after Bombardier acquired Learjet in 1990. Derived from the Learjet 55, the type made its first flight in 1991 and entered service in 1993, powered by two Pratt & Whitney Canada PW305A engines.
Production of the original Learjet 60 continued until 2007, when it was succeeded by the Learjet 60XR, which introduced an updated cockpit and cabin. Production of the 60XR ended in 2013.
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Other models kept the Learjet production line active for almost another decade. Bombardier ended Learjet production in 2022, nearly 60 years after the original Learjet first flew. The final aircraft, a Learjet 75, was delivered in March of that year.
Bombardier has since concentrated its business jet portfolio on the Challenger and Global families, while continuing to support the Learjet fleet in service.
