Florida Learjet Crash Is Only the Fifth Fatal US Private Jet Charter Accident Since 2010, Industry Data Shows

All nine aboard a chartered Learjet 60 died when it crashed in Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday, 1 November. Private Jet Card Comparisons counts it as the fifth fatal US private jet charter accident since 2010. Its list includes paid passenger flights involving US-registered jets; the status of the 2012 Mexico flight as a commercial charter was disputed. US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called it a 'horrific tragedy'.

Private business jets have had far more fatal crashes. Investigators say the crew reported ice and turbulence, then sent a mayday call about a minute before the crash.

Five Fatal Charter Crashes Since 2010

In December 2012, a Learjet 25 carrying the singer Jenni Rivera crashed in Mexico, killing all seven aboard. In November 2015, a Hawker 700A hit an apartment building as it approached the airport in Akron, Ohio, killing all nine aboard. Nobody on the ground was hurt in that crash. US investigators blamed the crew, citing the operator's casual attitude to safety rules as a factor. The chart below shows each of the five accidents.

A Falcon 50 overran a runway at Greenville, South Carolina, in September 2018, killing both pilots and seriously injuring its two passengers. A later NTSB report said the captain held an airline transport pilot certificate, but his Falcon 50 type rating limited him to second-in-command duties; the co-pilot held only a private pilot certificate. In February 2024, a Challenger 604 lost both engines near Naples, Florida, and crash-landed on a motorway. Its captain and co-pilot died, while a flight attendant and two passengers escaped. Including Sunday's crash, the five accidents killed 29 people.

Why Charter Flights Rank as Safer

Air ambulances, cargo flights, propeller aircraft and helicopters fall outside the count. So does flying under Part 91, the looser rules for jets used privately by owners and company flight departments. Charter covers ad hoc hire and jet card flights. By hours flown, both sectors are broadly comparable. Aircraft on charter certificates logged about 1.9 million hours across North America in 2025, against about 2.4 million under Part 91, according to flight-tracking firm Argus.

The safety records differ sharply, at least in raw numbers. From the start of 2010 to the end of 2020, privately operated business jets had 32 fatal accidents and 118 deaths, according to an analysis by the trade publication Aviation International News. The two counts cover different periods and fleets, so they are not like-for-like. Part 135 also sets tighter standards for crew rest, pilot training and maintenance.

What Investigators Know So Far

Aurora Aviation, which trades as Upper Jets, operated the jet, N722BD, from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas. More than 20 National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators are on site. Board member Thomas Chapman said they have evidence of 'some breakup of the aircraft before impact,' but will not name a cause while on scene.

Captain Jeff Gregory was 55, and co-pilot Nathalia Filgueiras was 20, an age drawing public comment. Jared Isaacman, NASA's administrator and a veteran Learjet pilot, wrote personally on X. He said charter firms routinely hire pilots early in their careers to fly beside senior captains, after required training and checks.