What the NTSB Is Examining as It Investigates Why a Learjet Plunged Into the Ground
Investigators say the left tail elevator broke into three pieces, with weather and possible in-flight breakup now central to the probe.
- On Tuesday, National Transportation Safety Board member Thomas B. Chapman announced investigators recovered the left tail elevator, a "very important piece of evidence," found 1.3 to 3.8 miles from the Palm Beach County crash site.
- The Learjet departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport for the Bahamas on Sunday, experiencing a rapid loss of altitude after the crew reported icing and moderate turbulence at approximately 35,000 feet.
- Former NTSB investigator Greg Feith stated the debris points to an in-flight breakup, possibly caused by pilot efforts to level the jet and over-stress the aircraft structure, killing all nine aboard including Adam Robinson.
- Recovered parts lay close to the main impact site, suggesting they separated at low altitude when the airplane leveled off at about 8,000 feet, indicating structural failure during pilot recovery attempts.
- Federal investigators continue the probe to determine whether the elevator failure caused the crash or resulted from it, though they have not yet located the cockpit voice recorder to confirm its activation status.
34 Articles
34 Articles
What the NTSB is examining as it investigates why a Learjet plunged into the ground
By Alaa Elassar, CNN (CNN) — Nearly 4 miles separated a piece of a Learjet’s tail from the burning crater gouged into the pavement where the aircraft came down.The plane, carrying nine people including a couple with children, plunged 35,000 feet, nose-first, into a South Florida roadway on Sunday afternoon. The aircraft was reduced to
Le Journal de Montreal
Le Journal de QuebecAt least four scenarios are possible, perhaps several at the same time.
The tail section of the Learjet that crashed at a speed of more than 480 km/h in a residential area of Florida was found almost 6 kilometers from the scene of the tragedy. The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) announced the finding, two days after the crash of the $ 2 million aircraft in Palm Beach County, which occurred on Sunday and left behind a huge crater. Florida: They found three pieces of the tail of the aircraft kilometers …
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