A Texas technology entrepreneur, his wife, their two young children and three other family members were among nine people killed when a private jet crashed in a South Florida neighborhood Sunday afternoon. The family was traveling to the Bahamas when their Learjet 60 went down near Greenacres in Palm Beach County, leaving no survivors.
Adam Robinson, his wife, Helen Sharp, and their children, Emma, 4, and Charlie, 2, were identified by relatives in a statement shared on Facebook Monday. Their deaths have left family members and friends struggling to come to terms with the loss of an entire young family.
Two family friends, Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr, were also aboard the aircraft. The family’s nanny, Anita Maria Cetina, who cared for the children, was among those killed. Relatives described her as someone who had become an important part of the family through her love and care for Emma and Charlie.
The two pilots also died. The pilot was identified as Jeff Gregory, who had previously worked for East Coast Jets, a private charter company. The co-pilot was 20-year-old Nathalia G. Filgueiras, whose family confirmed her identity. She earned her pilot’s license at 17 and learned to fly from her father, who is also a pilot.
The Learjet departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas, bound for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas. It crashed at approximately 12:50 p.m. on Sunday, November 1, near Military Trail in the Greenacres area, about seven miles southwest of West Palm Beach.
Investigators have since uncovered troubling details about the aircraft’s final moments. According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the crew reported icing conditions, moderate turbulence and precipitation before the jet began rapidly losing altitude. Air traffic control communications also captured the crew dealing with an increasingly serious emergency before the aircraft went down.
NTSB investigators said there were indications that the aircraft began breaking apart before hitting the ground. Debris was scattered across a wide area, and officials warned that aircraft pieces could be found some distance from the main crash site. Investigators are examining the wreckage, aircraft systems and weather conditions to determine what happened.
The weather is expected to play an important part in the investigation. Heavy rain and thunderstorms were affecting the region around the time of the crash, while the crew had reported icing at high altitude. Investigators have not established whether icing, turbulence or another problem caused the aircraft to lose control.
The crash also forced hundreds of residents from a nearby mobile home community to leave their homes. Approximately 600 people were affected by the evacuation, with some spending the night at shelters while authorities secured the area and worked to recover the wreckage. One person on the ground also suffered a leg injury, according to investigators.
Robinson was the founder and chief executive of several technology companies, according to his LinkedIn profile. His wife and children were traveling with him, along with people who were close to the family. What began as a flight from Texas to the Bahamas ended in a tragedy that claimed the lives of all nine people aboard.
The NTSB is leading the investigation with assistance from other federal aviation authorities. Investigators are expected to spend several days documenting the crash site, examining aircraft components and trying to recover important evidence, including the cockpit voice recorder if it was still aboard.
For the families left behind, the loss goes far beyond the destruction of an aircraft. Adam and Helen lost their lives alongside the two young children they were raising, while friends and relatives are now left mourning seven passengers and two crew members who never made it to their destination.
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