20-Year-Old Co-Pilot Killed In Florida Learjet Crash
Twenty-year-old Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, a young pilot who earned her private pilot’s licence at 17, has been identified as one of the nine people killed in a Learjet 60 crash in Florida, United States. She was serving as the aircraft’s co-pilot at the time of the crash.
The aircraft crashed in a residential area near Greenacres in Palm Beach County on Sunday, 1 November 2026, shortly before 1pm local time. It was travelling from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas to North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas when it plunged to the ground and burst into flames.
Filgueiras’s mother, Camila, and stepfather, Thiago Corteleti, confirmed her identity to the media.
The Florida-born aviator first attracted attention in 2023 when she obtained her private pilot’s licence at just 17 while attending West Boca Raton High School. Through the Palm Beach County School District’s Aviation Academy, she accumulated 88 flight hours and achieved her qualification before obtaining a driver’s licence.
She later continued her aviation training and reportedly accumulated more than 1,300 flight hours. She worked as a commercial pilot for Fort Lauderdale-based charter company Upper Jets and hoped to become an airline pilot.
Air traffic control recordings captured the Learjet crew reporting icing, moderate turbulence and precipitation before declaring an emergency. The aircraft subsequently entered a rapid descent, with the crew reporting an overspeed condition.
The final radio communications included the words, “We’re out of time.”
Investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) are examining the crash. Preliminary evidence indicates that parts of the aircraft may have broken apart before impact. The cause has not yet been established.
The crash also forced the evacuation of approximately 600 residents in the surrounding area.
Filgueiras’s mother said her daughter loved flying and was living her dream.
