Learjet 60 crashes in Greenacres, Florida, killing all nine people on board

A Learjet 60 crashed in Greenacres, Palm Beach County, Florida, on the afternoon of 1 November 2026, killing all nine people on board. The aircraft, registration N722BD, had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas at 1537 UTC bound for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas.

Flight tracking data show the jet was cruising near 35,250 feet when it began a rapid descent. Within roughly one minute it fell to 8,750 feet. Pilots reported ice accumulation, an outside air temperature of minus 47 degrees Celsius, moderate turbulence and an overspeed condition. Recorded air-traffic control audio captured the crew declaring a mayday and stating they were descending at rates exceeding 10,000 and then 20,000 feet per minute.

The impact occurred near the intersection of Military Trail and 10th Avenue North, close to a shopping area and residential streets. The aircraft struck nose-first, creating a crater and erupting in flames. No ground fatalities have been confirmed. The National Transportation Safety Board has dispatched a go-team to the site. The Federal Aviation Administration is also investigating.

The Learjet 60 was approximately 22 years old and registered to a Delaware limited-liability company. It had been listed for charter. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy described the crash as a horrific tragedy. This is the second-deadliest aviation accident in the United States in 2026, following a skydiving plane crash in Missouri that killed 12 people in June.

Investigators will examine the aircraft’s maintenance records, the pilots’ training and experience, weather conditions along the route, and the sequence of events after the icing report. The steep descent rate and the crew’s description of an overspeed condition point toward a possible loss of control at high altitude, but the precise causal chain remains under investigation. Wreckage recovery and flight-data recorder analysis will take days or weeks.

Local emergency services secured the scene quickly. Traffic was diverted around the impact zone. Palm Beach County officials have not released the names of the occupants pending notification of next of kin. The crash occurred in daylight under cloudy conditions with reported precipitation in the area.

Business aviation safety groups have noted that high-altitude icing remains a recognised risk for certain jet types, though Learjet models have operated for decades with established procedures for such encounters. The NTSB’s final report is unlikely to appear for many months. In the meantime, the accident has renewed attention on weather-related loss-of-control events in corporate and charter flying.

The flight path took the aircraft across the Gulf of Mexico before it turned toward the Bahamas. The last reliable altitude and speed data were recorded moments before impact. Families of those on board have begun arriving in the Palm Beach area as identification proceeds.