A YOUNG co-pilot sent a chilling final text to her boyfriend just minutes before the private jet she was flying plunged from the sky, killing all nine people on board.
The 20-year-old warned her fellow pilot boyfriend about dangerous conditions in the air before the Learjet plummeted more than 27,000 feet in just over a minute.
Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras was flying over Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday when she messaged her boyfriend around 12:40 pm, just ten minutes before the deadly crash.
“She just said, ‘I’ve got turbulence, I’ve got ice,’” her stepfather, Thiago Corteleti, 44, told the New York Post.
“She texted her boyfriend, I think, at 12:40 p.m. and the accident was at 12:50 p.m.,” he added.
The young aviator, who had already logged around 1,300 hours of flying experience, frequently flew alongside her boyfriend and shared pictures and videos of their trips together.
But Sunday’s flight ended in tragedy when the Learjet 60 lost control and crashed into a residential area, erupting into a massive fireball.
What we know so far about the Learjet crash:
- The plane went down in Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday night, with bone-chilling audio revealing the flight’s final moments before the crash killed all nine people on board.
- The young co-pilot was identified as Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, 20. A resurfaced interview with Filgueiras revealed that she earned her pilot’s license at just 17.
- It was initially feared that pieces of the aircraft had ripped off mid-air before the pilots lost control.
- Video of the crash site showed the fiery crater left by the Learjet as it plummeted to the ground.
- Experts have identified clues in the harrowing audio pointing to a potential cause of the crash known by pilots as “coffin corner.”
- The other victims have been identified as Adam Robinson, 45, his wife, Helena Sharp, 40, their two children, Emma, 4, and Charlie, 2, as well as two close friends, a nanny, and the captain.
The aircraft had departed Austin, Texas, that morning and was heading to North Eleuthera in the Bahamas with two pilots and seven passengers on board.
Flight data showed the jet plunged an estimated 25,300 feet in just 62 seconds before slamming into the ground.
Harrowing audio captured the crew desperately contacting air traffic controllers as the aircraft began its terrifying decent.
“We’re descending 8,000 — mayday, mayday — we’re descending 10,000 feet per minute,” Filgueiras warned.
As the situation worsened, she reported, “We are in an overspeed condition, descending 20,000 feet per minute.”
The crew had earlier reported ice forming on the aircraft and moderate turbulence while flying at around 35,000 feet.
They requested permission to climb to 37,000 feet before the emergency unfolded.
At one point, Filgueiras warned air traffic controllers, “We’re going to crash into the ground.”
A male voice could also be heard reciting the Lord’s Prayer in the final moments of the distress recording.
Filgueiras’ mother, Camila, confirmed to the New York Post that her daughter was among those killed.
The young pilot, who grew up in Palm Beach County, had dreamed of flying from an early age and earned private pilot’s license at just 17.
She receiving the license in October 2023 while attending the West Boca Raton High School, before she was even licensed to drive.
“I definitely do brag because people say, ‘Oh, you can’t drive,’ and I’m like, ‘Yeah, but I can fly,’” she told CBS12 in an interview that year.
Her passion for aviation began in high school, when she enrolled in ground school in 2020, following her father’s interest in recreational flying.
Filgueiras later became a flight instructor and obtained her commercial pilot certificate in 2026.
Among the nine victims were software company founder Adam Robinson, 45, his wife Helen Sharp, 40, and their two young children, Emma, four, and Charlie, two.
The family had been traveling with two close friends and a nanny.
The plane’s captain has also been identified as Jeff Gregory, 55, whose identity was confirmed to TMZ by a family member.
The impact left a massive crater in the road, scattered burning debris across nearby properties and forced around 600 residents to evacuate.
Aviation expert Terry Tozer told The Sun on Monday that the plane may have encountered severe weather before suffering structural damage during its high-speed descent.
“The video recording showing the aircraft actually just before the impact appears to have the tail missing. So it looks like an in-flight breakup of the aircraft,” he said.
However, investigators have not determined whether the jet broke apart in midair or what caused it to lose control.
National Transportation Safety Board member Tom Chapman said on Monday that ice and turbulence were among the factors investigators were examining.
The NTSB is investigating the disaster, including the aircraft’s final movements and the circumstances surrounding its sudden plunge.
