OT: Learjet crash near West Palm Beach

Cats_2010

Heisman
Jan 8, 2010
12,106
20,932
103
20 year old pilot
She got her pilot license before she got her drivers license. She was experienced enough to be flying (even 2nd seat) or she wouldn’t have been there. Sometimes when a plane does certain things it doesn’t matter how much experience one has or doesn’t, it’s not a salvage able situation. The UPS crash a year ago is a prime example. 3 pilots, all many years of experience and there was nothing they could do.
 

Mdnerd

All-American
Apr 20, 2022
2,083
6,344
113
She got her pilot license before she got her drivers license. She was experienced enough to be flying (even 2nd seat) or she wouldn’t have been there. Sometimes when a plane does certain things it doesn’t matter how much experience one has or doesn’t, it’s not a salvage able situation. The UPS crash a year ago is a prime example. 3 pilots, all many years of experience and there was nothing they could do.
Experience meant nothing once they entered the storm. It could have meant a lot as to how they got there.
 

NociHTTP

Heisman
Mar 8, 2023
13,277
20,683
113
Our species desire to push the laws of physics and nature is our greatest and worst attribute.

Nothing about flying is safe. Nothing about an ape putting together some scrap metal and blasting off into the sky is safe.

Smaller jets and helicopters flying local/regional seem to be even less safe. Every year there’s tragic stories like this.

A young pilot being allowed to take off with a storm anywhere near the area/route is insane as well.

Ice on the tail?! Did that accumulate before or after take off?

This seems like a lot of things went wrong.
🤣🤣🤣🤣
 
Last edited:

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
For Anyone that saw the video it was obvious there would be zero chance for survivors. The plane nose dived into the ground at a minimum of 250 MPH. Prayers for the family of the lost is certainly warranted but a comment hoping for survivors seemed disingenuous.
Have you seen the wreckage? It’s like a missile hit. There was nothing left of the plane. You couldn’t see even a seat, or a tail, wings, fuselage, nothing.
 

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
Lears dont have the best mx record. Id like to get a look at the on board radar they had. Pretty shocking they flew right into a storm, but not shocking at all the storm brought them down. Precip at that altitude and temperature is a horrific sign and they certainly encountered severe turbulence.

Their radar should have picked up that storm in front of them, but it doesnt seem like it based on the radio calls leading up to the accident.
Yeah I seen some shots of the radar overlay and the path they were on, you could see a huge cone of the storm they were approaching. They requested to go above it I believe. They asked to go above 41,000 feet I think I heard on the radio transmission, they apparently were not high enough.
 
  • Like
Reactions: chroix

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
That’s why I am booking a tour of the Titanic with Oceangate.
That dude was an idiot and the only saving grace for me was that he was on the craft. With the amount of people who were fired for trying to stop his stupidity to the previous passenger stories about all the technical issues and sounds they had on previous dives I would have never set foot in that thing. The guy aboard who was obsessed with Titanic and had previously been on many dives I believe had a death wish or wanted to die with the wreckage. Not many people get to his status in life and are completely stupid. I honestly think his obsession made him not care about any risk.
 
  • Like
Reactions: chroix

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
The kid (yes, kid) flying the plane, or at least 2nd seat, graduated HS in 2023 or 2024. Nathalia Filguerias (sp?). Looked to be really trying to become Insta-famous.
I have no idea how common or uncommon that is. She was just on comms mainly as the co-pilot, but if something happens she had to take over and be proficient enough to Captain it on her own. I think if I were rich enough to charter a Jet or own one, my pilots would be scrutinized very heavily and I’d want the most experienced ones possible.
 
Last edited:

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
Im not a big fan of flying either and it just feels like its becoming a bit more risky in recent years. Planes getting older, cost cutting. Feels like labor has gotten worse (plane repairs, engineers, security). More incompetency. Granted, it feels that way with a lot of industries post-covid but with those, im not putting my life in their hands.

Theres probably, at least 20-30 workers the day of your flight who have to be on their A-game. Pilots, air traffic control, various inspectors and security folks. I dont love those odds that someone in that group isnt screwing up.
It most certainly has, the lack of properly trained air traffic controllers, the hiring practices of people working on them, and the cost cutting by manufacturers has made flying very scary. I have never seen so many high profile events involving flying as I have the last 5 years. Obviously it’s still fairly low % overall but you are going to die if you happen to be on the flight something fails more often than not.
 

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
I really wish I didn’t listen to the audio, no idea why I even did really. Also, not that I’ll have the option, but if I were filthy rich I feel I’d be flying first class in a major airline and not private. You hear about something like this with small private planes about once or twice a year but almost never with commercial flights.
That audio was haunting for sure. Very scary just listening to it. It happened so fast. Rich people don’t like to be bothered. I would certainly opt for the most safe(relatively) aircraft that I could afford. I’d buy a 737 or something rather than a sleek Jet if I had the funds.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Johnnie Africa

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
Our species desire to push the laws of physics and nature is our greatest and worst attribute.

Nothing about flying is safe. Nothing about an ape putting together some scrap metal and blasting off into the sky is safe.

Smaller jets and helicopters flying local/regional seem to be even less safe. Every year there’s tragic stories like this.

A young pilot being allowed to take off with a storm anywhere near the area/route is insane as well.

Ice on the tail?! Did that accumulate before or after take off?

This seems like a lot of things went wrong.
They apparently had an issue about an hour before the crash, I’m guessing that is the ice you are talking about. I never got to that part of the story yet.
 
  • Like
Reactions: chroix

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
2 options. One they made a bad decision. The second and far more horrifying is their radar didn't paint the cell.
Why didn’t air traffic controll have them adjust their path? They were in contact before they started going down, it may have been too late by that point. I know that it is a very tough job.
 
  • Like
Reactions: megablue and chroix

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
There are levels to this. She was certainly inexperienced in many ways. I fly with guys and girls with 1000s of hours and still lack experience in many ways depending on their background.

That said, far too early to even speculate her experience having anything to do with this.
Plus the hours they have piloted on certain planes in a major factor as well. It’s one thing to be proficient in flying a high wing aircraft like a Cub/Cessna, it’s another to fly a LearJet.
 

Cats_2010

Heisman
Jan 8, 2010
12,106
20,932
103
Have you seen the wreckage? It’s like a missile hit. There was nothing left of the plane. You couldn’t see even a seat, or a tail, wings, fuselage, nothing.
I have and I’m pretty certain the same could be said for flight 93 which was a much larger aircraft. Nosediving into the ground seemingly completely disintegrates an aircraft presumably.
 

*Fox2Monk*

Heisman
Jun 10, 2009
48,701
89,744
113
She got her pilot license before she got her drivers license. She was experienced enough to be flying (even 2nd seat) or she wouldn’t have been there. Sometimes when a plane does certain things it doesn’t matter how much experience one has or doesn’t, it’s not a salvage able situation. The UPS crash a year ago is a prime example. 3 pilots, all many years of experience and there was nothing they could do.
I don’t think her lack of experience caused this crash, but we won’t know for sure until the report comes out. I don’t think any pilot would have saved that plane after it entered the storm cell.
 

Anon468747

Redshirt
Nov 2, 2026
34
37
3
It most certainly has, the lack of properly trained air traffic controllers, the hiring practices of people working on them, and the cost cutting by manufacturers has made flying very scary. I have never seen so many high profile events involving flying as I have the last 5 years. Obviously it’s still fairly low % overall but you are going to die if you happen to be on the flight something fails more often than not.
I think we just hear about it more these days because of social media.
 
  • Like
Reactions: The Ganner

The Ganner

All-Conference
Nov 21, 2009
477
1,309
93
I think we just hear about it more these days because of social media.
Just like a few years ago people thought train derailments were happening more frequently because, after one high profile disaster, every minor incident was getting reported on and shared on socials.
 

Mdnerd

All-American
Apr 20, 2022
2,083
6,344
113
I don’t think her lack of experience caused this crash, but we won’t know for sure until the report comes out. I don’t think any pilot would have saved that plane after it entered the storm cell.
The plane was done once they entered. Apparently that aircraft can have a data fed weather map that has a lag. The storm was building extremely fast, so that lag could have made the difference.

Lots of questions that will all be answered soon.
 

Mdnerd

All-American
Apr 20, 2022
2,083
6,344
113
Plus the hours they have piloted on certain planes in a major factor as well. It’s one thing to be proficient in flying a high wing aircraft like a Cub/Cessna, it’s another to fly a LearJet.
Yea there are different worlds in aviation. A classic is military single pilot transitioning to civilian passenger flying.

By all accounts the military pilot is the epitome of professionalism and ability. However those are 2 completely different jobs with wildly different challenges.

The learning curve is very steep, even for a 20 year veteran.

Number of hours and quality of experience for a given job dont always line up perfectly.
 

NociHTTP

Heisman
Mar 8, 2023
13,277
20,683
113
Why didn’t air traffic controll have them adjust their path? They were in contact before they started going down, it may have been too late by that point. I know that it is a very tough job.
The copilot asked for a better ride and I think she even requested a deviation, but ATC person resisted until it was too late, I think.
 
  • Like
Reactions: *Fox2Monk*

Anon468747

Redshirt
Nov 2, 2026
34
37
3
Yea there are different worlds in aviation. A classic is military single pilot transitioning to civilian passenger flying.

By all accounts the military pilot is the epitome of professionalism and ability. However those are 2 completely different jobs with wildly different challenges.

The learning curve is very steep, even for a 20 year veteran.

Number of hours and quality of experience for a given job dont always line up perfectly.
I'll still take my chances with the 20 yr veteran naval/air force aviator rather than the 20 YEAR OLD flight school grad. MD is there a quality pilot shortage these days? And is the training still top shelf at the schools and tbe airlines?
 

TheDude73

Heisman
Jan 7, 2006
24,369
24,207
113
There are levels to this. She was certainly inexperienced in many ways. I fly with guys and girls with 1000s of hours and still lack experience in many ways depending on their background.

That said, far too early to even speculate her experience having anything to do with this.
The fact that she was on with ATC all the way down to impact says a lot about this 20-year-old woman's professionalism and focus. Yeah, she screeched a couple of times, but I think we all would regardless of our maturity. But that info she provided all the way down and just prior to the storm cell precip and likely increased icing and 60-degree pitch in overspeed before hitting the ground nose-first at what was reported to be 381-mph will be invaluable for the NTSB investigation. Especially since it may be very unlikely to recover the black box.
 

Mdnerd

All-American
Apr 20, 2022
2,083
6,344
113
The fact that she was on with ATC all the way down to impact says a lot about this 20-year-old woman's professionalism and focus. Yeah, she screeched a couple of times, but I think we all would regardless of our maturity. But that info she provided all the way down and just prior to the storm cell precip and likely increased icing and 60-degree pitch in overspeed before hitting the ground nose-first at wt was reported to be 381-mph will be invaluable for the NTSB investigation. Especially since it may be very unlikely to recover the black box.
Dont question her at all. There is also far too much focus on just her since its her voice on the radio. She was not the only pilot in that cockpit.

Cannot imagine what she and the others went through in those final moments
 

TheDude73

Heisman
Jan 7, 2006
24,369
24,207
113
Yeah I seen that on an X post.
Should add to this that it could be just the speed in the video that made them blurred. It's even hard to see the wings. But if ice built up heavily and they hit overspeed, that could indeed sheer those things right off, especially since they were fighting to keep from diving.

I listened to the audio once. Not pleasant. I fly (as a pax) all the time for work, and while I'm terrified of the idea of crashing, I'm not afraid to fly (yet).
 

TheDude73

Heisman
Jan 7, 2006
24,369
24,207
113
That video was hard to watch. The audio was even harder to listen to. RIP to all of them. Never seen something like that. A plane just slamming into the ground as fast as it can.
MTS056 was the medivac plane that did something similar last Jan in Philly (also a Lear, but the 55 version). There weren't any closer videos (and for some reason all are like watching a UHF channel from the 80s), but I bet if someone was as close to that one as the one yesterday, it'd look just as fast.
 

Pygmy Sasquatch

Heisman
Mar 27, 2009
10,019
11,518
113
Have you seen the wreckage? It’s like a missile hit. There was nothing left of the plane. You couldn’t see even a seat, or a tail, wings, fuselage, nothing.
My stepbrother's plane went down like that. They dropped about 15,000 feet in 90 seconds or so, out of Kandahar and spiraled in. Nothing left. They were trying to climb out of some weather and stalled.
 

UKortho

Heisman
Oct 13, 2015
5,311
10,402
77
Yeah I seen some shots of the radar overlay and the path they were on, you could see a huge cone of the storm they were approaching. They requested to go above it I believe. They asked to go above 41,000 feet I think I heard on the radio transmission, they apparently were not high enough.
Yep. It sounds like they waited too long- or I guess the storm cell popped up or formed much faster than what could be predicted. She said they were encountering precipitation and the temp was incredibly low. They went down fast after she said they needed to ascend.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: *Fox2Monk*

NociHTTP

Heisman
Mar 8, 2023
13,277
20,683
113
The audio recording is damn near haunting. Just a tragedy.
I had to put my head in my hands when I heard her scream. This one will haunt me for a long time. Had a difficult time sleeping today, was thinking of her, the other pilot and the passengers.
 

Anon468747

Redshirt
Nov 2, 2026
34
37
3
Another ? for MD (or anyone else who knows aviation): I often go down the rabbit hole of not only crash/accident reenactments. reports, but listening to every day ATC communications. How the hell do they all understand each other when they're speaking so fast? I literally have no idea how planes aren't running into each other dozens of times a day.
 
KSR

Latest

  1. 01 KSR Basketball Recruiting 5-star SF AJ Williams will take an official visit to Kentucky this weekend
  2. 02 KSR Cats in the NFL BBNFL Week 8: Wan'Dale Robinson and Chris Rodriguez are touchdown twins
  3. 03 KSR Football CFP committee chair Hunter Yurachek explains why Alabama was ranked so high
  4. 04 KSR Football Bio Blast: Tennessee Volunteers
  5. 05 KSR KSR Show, 11/4: Recapping UK's first win plus a morning commitment