PALM BEACH COUNTY, Florida — Updated November 3, 2026. Federal investigators examining the November 1 Learjet 60 crash that killed all nine people aboard say there are preliminary signs that part of the aircraft may have separated before it struck the ground. The National Transportation Safety Board has not determined a probable cause.
This is a new follow-up report to KNN’s November 1 crash coverage, not a revision of the earlier story.
What the NTSB is examining now
The NTSB identifies the investigation as ERA27MA026, covering a Learjet 60 operated by Aurora Aviation, doing business as Upper Jet, on a flight from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas to North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas. The jet crashed near the Greenacres/Lake Worth Beach area around 12:50 p.m. Eastern on Sunday.
At a Monday, November 2 briefing, NTSB member Tom Chapman reported evidence suggesting the aircraft began to break up before impact. Investigators said debris might be scattered beyond the main crash crater. The team was working amid rainwater and difficult wreckage-recovery conditions, and had not confirmed whether a cockpit voice recorder remained aboard the aircraft. Those points describe investigation leads, not an explanation of what triggered the descent.
Radio recordings capture emergency calls
Audio archived from air traffic control communications records the crew reporting moderate turbulence, ice and precipitation before requesting a climb. The aircraft then began descending extremely rapidly, and the crew declared an emergency. These publicly shared transmissions are radio communications; they should not be confused with data from an onboard cockpit voice recorder, which investigators were still seeking to confirm.
Reporting by the Associated Press, NBC 6 and CBS News describes the final calls and the pilots’ struggle to control the aircraft. The occurrence of icing and severe weather is documented in the communications, but the final accident cause remains unconfirmed.
Watch: Actual crash footage and recorded air-traffic audio
Viewer discretion: The following broadcaster report includes disturbing real footage of the aircraft striking the ground and audio from the final flight transmissions. It does not show a simulation. KTLA 5 retains responsibility for its footage; KNN links to the broadcaster’s original upload rather than downloading or republishing the video file.
Watch the original KTLA 5 video showing the dashcam crash footage and radio audio. A separate FOX 13 / Storyful dashcam clip credited to Aki Kuusisto shows the actual impact. For the official response, see the NTSB November 2 investigative briefing.
Residents and what remains unknown
About 600 nearby residents were affected by evacuation efforts in the aftermath. During the November 2 investigation update, officials also reported that a person in a vehicle near the crash sustained a leg injury. That updates the earlier statements that there were no immediate reports of ground injuries.
Investigators still need to determine the aircraft’s mechanical condition, weather encounters and sequence of events. The presence of icing reports and indications of an in-flight breakup do not establish a causal chain, and speculation about pilot decisions or a specific aircraft failure would be premature.
Verified sources
- NTSB case ERA27MA026 — ongoing investigation
- WFLX, November 2 NTSB briefing
- NBC 6 / Associated Press reporting on ATC audio
- FOX 13, November 2 investigation update
Image note: The featured image is a photographic-style illustration of a similar Learjet-type aircraft; the second image is a licensed genuine stock photograph of a business jet, NOT the accident aircraft. The linked and embedded broadcaster video contains actual crash footage and air-traffic communications.
