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Private jet with nine aboard crashes into Florida neighborhood near Mar-a-Lago
RePrivate jet with nine aboard crashes into Florida neighborhood near Mar-a-Lago
A private Learjet carrying nine people crashed into a residential area of South Florida on Sunday afternoon, erupting into a fireball about nine miles from Mar-a-Lago. The Federal Aviation Administration said the plane had left Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was bound for the Bahamas, and the National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation.
A private jet carrying nine people crashed into a residential area of South Florida on Sunday afternoon, erupting into a massive fireball roughly nine miles from President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate. The Federal Aviation Administration said the crash occurred near Cresthaven, Florida, around 12:50 p.m. local time on Sunday, Nov. 1.
In a statement, the FAA said that nine people were on board the aircraft. The plane had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was headed to North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas. The agency said the FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board would investigate, and that the NTSB would be in charge of the investigation and would provide all updates. The FAA's statement made clear that the federal inquiry would be led by the NTSB, the independent agency that typically examines the causes of major aviation accidents.
Emergency crews closed Military Trail between Cresthaven Boulevard and 10th Avenue North and warned the public to avoid the area. Palm Beach County Fire Rescue posted on X that the incident was an aircraft incident, urging people to stay away and warning that it would be an extended incident. Video shared on social media showed the aircraft dropping rapidly before an explosion sent smoke and flames into the air, and the footage captured the sudden descent that residents and bystanders witnessed moments before the blast.
According to the flight-tracking service Flightradar24, the Learjet left Austin at 3:37 p.m. Central time bound for the Bahamas and climbed to a cruising altitude of 41,000 feet. The service said that at 5:35 p.m. Eastern time, near Naples, Florida, the aircraft began a descent to 35,000 feet. At 5:48 p.m., it briefly climbed before entering a steep, right-hand descent. Flightradar24 publicized these data points on X, providing the public with a timeline of the flight's final stages before the crash.
One regional outlet described the aircraft as a $2 million Learjet 60 that crashed into a South Florida mobile home park, apparently demolishing at least one trailer in a massive fireball. A witness quoted in that report said the impact sounded like a missile. That same outlet reported that at least nine people were feared dead, a figure that matches the number of people the FAA said were on board. Reporting on casualties and the condition of those aboard the jet remained preliminary at the time of publication, and officials had not released a full accounting.
The crash occurred in a community not far from Mar-a-Lago, the Palm Beach club and residence associated with Trump, a detail that drew attention because of the estate's prominence in national news. The source material does not indicate whether the president or his property was affected or whether any official connected to the estate commented on the incident.
The crash is under active investigation by federal authorities, and the NTSB is expected to release further findings as its inquiry proceeds. Local officials have not indicated when Military Trail or the surrounding area will reopen. This is a developing story, and further details on the victims, the cause of the descent, and the scope of damage to the neighborhood are expected as officials provide updates.
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