Federal investigators said Monday they are probing the role 20-year-old co-pilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras had in the crash of a Learjet that killed nine people in a horrifying crash.
The doomed $2 million private plane was flying through temperatures of -50 degrees Fahrenheit and started to pick up ice and hit heavy turbulence, authorities said.
The plane began to break up before impact, scattering debris over a half-mile radius.
The crash site crater is also partially filled with water, hampering investigations into what exactly caused the Bombardier Learjet 60 to crash near a trailer park near Palm Beach, Florida, the National Transportation Safety Board told the press on Monday.
The plane had climbed to about 37,000 feet to avoid foul weather when its crew reported icing and turbulence before it suddenly plunged toward the ground.
Here’s the latest on the fatal Learjet crash in Florida
“We do have some indication the aircraft was breaking up before impact,” NTSB investigator Timothy Monville said.
The jet, which was traveling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas, was moving around 32,000 feet per minute before it exploded on the ground near a trailer park.
Among the victims was young co-pilot Filgueiras, who reportedly texted her boyfriend about icing and turbulence shortly before the disaster.
The pilot and the seven passengers on board have not been named publicly.
Investigators have not determined what caused the crash or whether ice accumulation played a role.
