A terrifying animation has recreated the final moments of the Learjet 60 that crashed in Florida, showing the aircraft’s rapid descent and the desperate cockpit exchanges before the disaster.
The simulation has sparked questions about what could have caused the business jet to enter an uncontrollable nosedive and crash in a residential area in Palm Beach County, Florida, on November 1, a few miles away from President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort. All nine people on board lost their lives.
Highlights
- A new animated video recreated the final moments of the Learjet 60 that crashed in Florida.
- The pilots requested a climb to 37,000 feet after encountering severe icing and turbulence.
- Seconds later, the 20-year-old co-pilot issued desperate mayday calls and said they were going to crash.
- The video, showing the recreation, claimed the aircraft may have lost an important part that led to the nose-dive.
The internet received a disturbing glimpse into what may have happened aboard the doomed Learjet 60 moments before it crashed
The Learjet was traveling from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas to North Eleuthera in the Bahamas when it encountered severe weather conditions.
According to the animation shared by digital creator channel AiTelly on November 3, the crew reported icing and moderate turbulence while flying at approximately 35,000 feet near Naples, Florida.
The pilots then requested permission to climb to 37,000 feet in search of smoother conditions.
But shortly after receiving clearance, the aircraft reportedly entered an extreme overspeed condition and began descending rapidly.
Initially, the pilot reported that the icing conditions were manageable, despite the moderate turbulence.
However, the situation soon deteriorated.
The pilots requested a climb to 37,000 feet after encountering severe icing and turbulence
As the aircraft began losing altitude at an alarming rate, the pilot declared an emergency.
“We’re going to crash into the ground,” said the 20-year-old co-pilot, Nathalia Filgueiras.
In another exchange, the pilot described the situation as an overspeed condition, reporting that the aircraft was descending at 20,000 feet per minute.
The aircraft plunged into a neighborhood, leaving a gaping hole that “looked like a meteor hit the ground,” residents said.
Beyond recreating the final moments, the animated video attempted to explain what might have caused the aircraft to become uncontrollable.
AiTelly suggested the Learjet may have lost its horizontal stabilizer
One of its theories involves the Learjet's horizontal stabilizer, which is a small, wing-like component that sits on the tail of the aircraft and maintains balance.
A damaged or malfunctioning horizontal stabilizer can lead to failure or even a complete loss of the plane’s control.
If the horizontal stabilizer gets detached or disappears, the nose of the aircraft will start to pitch down.
The video said the doomed Learjet’s horizontal stabilizer may have detached, thus sending the aircraft into a steep nose-dive and plunge into the ground.
However, the animation acknowledged that the available dashcam footage of the crash was too blurred to confirm whether the horizontal stabilizer actually broke off during the flight.
According to the video analysis, the jet may have struck the ground at approximately 691 miles per hour, potentially reaching supersonic speeds.
The animation estimated that the doomed jet was traveling at speeds it wasn’t built to withstand
The animation claims that the aircraft was traveling at more than 30,000 feet per minute during its descent.
It further estimates that the jet weighed approximately 19,000 pounds and was carrying around 2,900 pounds of remaining fuel. Consequently, the speed was far beyond what the aircraft was structurally built to withstand, which is why
These are estimates presented in the animation and not confirmed findings from an official crash investigation.
The recreation prompted skepticism, with some viewers questioning its technical explanations.
“I feel like they are really trying to sell us on it being a jet,” one commenter said.
Another pointed out the close proximity to Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.
“Mar-A-Lago is over 8 miles from crash site. just saying," they commented.
The questions kept coming, with one asking: “With a plunge of 30,000 feet per minute, are you still able to talk??”
“Don’t the conspiracy theorists just love these?” another said.
One said, “The video was scary to watch. Prayers for their family.”
The victims were on their way to the Bahamas for a birthday trip when disaster struck
The nine people aboard the ill-fated jet included Texas tech entrepreneur Adam Robinson, 45, his wife, Helen Sharp, 40, and their little ones, Emma, 4, and Charlie, 2.
The family was reportedly heading to the Bahamas for a birthday getaway for Adam and were joined by their nanny, Anita Maria Cetina, and family friends Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr.
The two pilots, Captain Jeff Gregory, 55, and co-pilot Nathalia Filgueiras, 20, also lost their lives in the crash.
The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating the crash, saying they will be spending days collecting every piece of the plane they can find at the crash site.
In a Tuesday update, investigators said they found another key component of the tail called the elevator, found over a mile away from the point of collision.
“Clearly human error, they should have never went through that big storm. What the hell were they thinking??” one commented on the video
