Learjet 60 Crashes in Palm Beach County, Killing All Nine on Board

A privately operated Bombardier Learjet 60 crashed on 1 November 2026 in Palm Beach County, Florida, killing all nine people on board. The aircraft, registration N722BD, had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas.

Air traffic control recordings show the crew first reported manageable clear ice and moderate turbulence while at approximately 35,000 feet. They requested a climb. Shortly afterward a mayday call was made. The pilot described a descent rate of 10,000 feet per minute that quickly increased to 20,000 feet per minute and an overspeed condition. The final transmission included the words “We’re out of time.”

Flight-tracking data indicate the jet descended from cruise altitude in roughly 70 to 77 seconds. At one point the vertical speed exceeded 32,000 feet per minute. The aircraft struck the ground nearly vertically near the intersection of Military Trail and 10th Avenue North in the Greenacres/Cresthaven area, creating a large crater and a fireball. No injuries were reported on the ground. Palm Beach County closed Military Trail between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue North while emergency crews worked the site.

The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board confirmed the fatalities. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy described the event as a horrific tragedy. The NTSB is leading the investigation and has dispatched a go-team; a media briefing was scheduled in West Palm Beach. The aircraft is a 2004 Learjet 60 owned by a Delaware limited-liability company. Bombardier stated it would support the investigation.

Dash-cam footage from vehicles on the road captured the final seconds of the near-vertical dive and the subsequent fireball. Investigators are examining weather conditions, including the presence of convective activity and icing at high altitude, along with aircraft systems and crew actions. The cause has not been determined.

The crash occurred several miles south of Palm Beach International Airport and roughly nine miles from Mar-a-Lago. Local emergency services declared a mass-casualty incident. Residents of nearby mobile-home communities were temporarily displaced while the site was secured and debris cleared.

Aviation authorities have not issued any immediate fleet-wide grounding related to the Learjet 60. The NTSB investigation will include recovery of flight-data and cockpit-voice recorders if they survive the impact, analysis of radar and ADS-B tracks, and review of maintenance records for the airframe and engines.