Nine killed as business jet crashes in Palm Beach County, Florida
Archived — this story has rotated out of today’s deck. It is kept here in full.
The gist
A Learjet 60 flying from Austin to the Bahamas crashed in Palm Beach County, killing all nine aboard.
The crash came as Florida also battled record rain and coastal flooding.
Background
The crash involved a Learjet 60 business jet traveling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas. It went down near Military Trail and 10th Avenue North in Palm Beach County around 12:50 p.m. Eastern time. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis called the scene "cataclysmic" and said the plane "looked like a missile going down, and left a big crater on the side of the road." The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation with the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration).
How it unfolded
- Nov 1, 2026A Learjet 60 flying from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas crashed in Palm Beach County around 12:50 p.m. Eastern time; all nine people aboard were killed.
- Nov 1, 2026Gov. Ron DeSantis said there appeared to be no casualties on the ground, and described the crash as "cataclysmic."
- Nov 2, 2026US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called the crash a "horrific tragedy"; FAA staff were heading to the site to support the NTSB investigation.
Who’s saying what
- Official
- DeSantis called the crash "cataclysmic" and said the plane "looked like a missile going down, and left a big crater on the side of the road."
- Official
- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy described the crash as a "horrific tragedy" and said FAA staff were heading to the site to support the NTSB investigation.
- Expert
- Austin aviation attorney Mike Slack said early reports suggest a sudden loss of control causing a near-vertical nosedive, and that the plane was maneuvering near a very intense thunderstorm before impact.
Still unverified
Authorities did not immediately say what caused the jet to go down or who was on it, and it was initially not immediately known if anyone on the jet or on the ground was injured or killed; it was also unclear whether the crash caused any damage to homes.