A family of four, including two young children, was among nine people killed after a private Learjet crashed in a residential neighbourhood in Florida on Sunday, November 1.
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Learjet → include → Sunday
The aircraft, a Learjet 60, was travelling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas when it plunged towards the ground and exploded into a fireball near Greenacres in Palm Beach County at around 12.50 pm local time.
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it → travel → pm
All nine people on board, including two pilots and seven passengers, died in the crash.
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people → include → crash
One person on the ground sustained a leg injury, officials said.
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officials → sustain → injury
The families of seven passengers identified their loved ones in a joint statement on social media on Monday.
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families → identify → Monday
The victims were identified as Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, their children Emma and Charlie, Rachael Reed, Charmi Fehr and Anita Maria Cetina.
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victims → identify → Robinson
The children, Emma, 4, and Charlie, 2, were travelling with their parents.
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children → travel → parents
Anita Maria Cetina, who worked as their nanny, and family friends Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr were also among the passengers.
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who → work → passengers
In the statement, the families described Adam and Helen as devoted parents and said their children were the centre of their lives.
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children → describe → lives
They also remembered Reed and Fehr as adventurous and full of joy, while describing Cetina as someone who had become an integral part of the family.
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who → remember → family
The crash also claimed the lives of both pilots.
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crash → claim → pilots
The co-pilot was identified as 20-year-old Nathalia Filgueiras, whose mother confirmed her death.
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mother → identify → death
Filgueiras had earned her private pilot's licence at the age of 17 and had logged more than 1,300 flight hours, according to her mother.
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Filgueiras → earn → mother
It remains unclear whether she was at the controls when the aircraft crashed.
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aircraft → remain → controls
What happened before the crash?
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What → happen → crash
According to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the aircraft was flying at approximately 35,000 feet when the pilots reported icing and moderate turbulence.
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pilots → accord → icing
The crew requested permission to climb to 37,000 feet to avoid precipitation.
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crew → request → precipitation
However, less than a minute later, the aircraft began descending rapidly and the pilots declared an emergency.
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pilots → begin → emergency
Air traffic control recordings captured a crew member reporting that the aircraft was descending at 10,000 feet per minute, before the rate increased to 20,000 feet per minute.
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rate → capture → minute
In the final moments, a crew member was heard saying, "We're going to crash into the ground."
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We → hear → ground
Flight-tracking data from Flightradar24 indicated that the descent rate at one point exceeded 32,000 feet per minute.
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rate → track → minute
What investigators have found
The NTSB is investigating the crash, with weather conditions emerging as a major focus.
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conditions → find → focus
NTSB investigators said there was evidence that parts of the aircraft may have broken off before it struck the ground.
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it → say → ground
Officials warned that debris could be scattered some distance from the main impact site.
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debris → warn → site
Investigators are also trying to establish whether the aircraft's cockpit voice recorder was on board at the time of the accident.
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recorder → try → accident
Maintenance records indicated that one had been installed.
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one → indicate → ?
The impact created a massive crater near the entrance to a mobile home community.
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impact → create → community
Around 600 residents were evacuated from the neighbourhood as emergency crews and investigators worked at the scene.
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crews → evacuate → scene
Authorities urged residents not to move any aircraft debris they might find and instead report it to investigators.
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they → urge → investigators
Robinson was an entrepreneur who founded the tech company Retention and regularly gave interviews about building a successful start-up.
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who → found → up
According to an online profile, Robinson previously worked on Wall Street for 10 years before launching an AI startup named GetEmail.
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Robinson → accord → startup
Helen ran a communications firm called Influential PR.
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Helen → run → firm
She also owned a successful, Aspen-based pottery studio called Helen Sharp Ceramics.
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She → own → studio
The Aporia
