A small private jet has crashed into a southern Florida neighbourhood, killing all nine people on board, according to US officials.
The Learjet 60 erupted in a giant fireball when it crashed near a busy road at 12:50pm on Sunday, local time.
US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said in a statement on X: “Today’s plane crash in Palm Beach County, is a horrific tragedy.”
The crash left a flaming crater in the ground. (Supplied: Eduin Cruz/via Reuters)
The aircraft had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was heading to the Bahamas, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Authorities did not immediately say what caused the crash or who was on board.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said the crash left a crater in the ground.
There were no immediate reports of anyone on the ground injured or killed, he said.
“It was a cataclysmic plane crash,” Mr DeSantis told reporters at the scene.
“It looked like a missile going down and [it] left a big crater on the side of the road.”
Storms had been reported in the area, and it was raining heavily as the news conference was held.
Turbulence and ice reported by pilot
The plane was heading east at 35,000 feet (about 11 kilometres) when the pilot reported turbulence, icing and rain and asked to climb 2,000 feet.
Someone in the plane’s cockpit reported to an air traffic controller that they were “managing the ice” but faced “moderate” turbulence and were seeking “better rides”.
Moments later, the plane entered a steep dive, first 10,000 feet per minute, then 20,000 feet per minute and up to 30,000 feet per minute, speeding the plane beyond its design limits, according to air traffic control recordings and flight tracking data.
The pilot declared an emergency and issued distress calls. The plane banked sharply to the right before it crashed steeply into the ground.
The circumstances of the crash remain under investigation. (AP: Mark Elias)
Minutes before the crash, the pilot reported turbulence was jolting the plane by as much as 700 feet, according to air traffic control recordings captured by LiveATC.net.
“We have light, clear ice that is manageable and moderate turbulence,” the pilot told controllers.
But the situation rapidly deteriorated.
After encountering bad weather and asking to climb, the pilot declared an emergency as the aircraft began losing altitude at an alarming rate.
“We’re descending 8,000 — mayday, mayday — we’re descending 10,000 feet per minute,” the pilot radioed.
“We are in an over-speed condition descending 20,000 feet per minute. We’re going to crash into the ground.”
About 35 seconds after the initial mayday announcement, the last thing heard from the cockpit was a rapidly spoken “we’re out of time”.
Flight tracking website Flightradar24 said data showed the vertical descent rate at one point exceeded 32,000 feet per minute.
Video from nearby cars captured the moment the aircraft plunged from the sky, struck near the road and exploded.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis says debris is scattered across a wide area. (Supplied: Eduin Cruz/via Reuters)
Thick black smoke engulfed the crash site.
Palm Beach County authorities are evacuating about 600 people from a nearby mobile home community while federal officials investigate the crash.
FAA records list the Bombardier-made BBDb.TO Learjet 60’s owner as a Delaware corporation.
Canada-based Bombardier said it would fully support the investigation and cooperate as needed.
ABC/wires
Source: www.abc.net.au
