Posted by Chinenye on Mon 02nd Nov, 2026 - tori.ng
A young pilot identified as Nathalia Gadelha is among nine people who died in a shocking private jet crash in Florida.
(Nathalia Gadelha. Photo by X/Instablog)
The 20 years old woman who was heard crying for help before a private jet crashed has been identified as Nathalia Gadelha.
She was one of nine people killed when a Learjet 60 private jet dropped more than 25,000 feet in under a minute and crashed into a home area in Palm Beach County, Florida, on Sunday.
Her mother, Camila, confirmed to news reporters that Nathalia was co-piloting the twin engine jet when it took off from Austin, Texas, bound for the Bahamas.
Video of the crash shows the plane diving into the ground and exploding in a huge fireball.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis said it looked like a missile going down and left a large crater.
A recording from the cockpit captures the final moments.
Gadelha can be heard warning that the plane was in an overspeed condition and descending fast.
A male co-pilot, who has not been named, was reportedly heard saying the Lord's Prayer during the emergency call.
Gadelha was heard screaming that they were about to crash.
Her identity came out days after rumours spread online that singer Lenny Kravitz was on board.
A representative for Kravitz said those reports were false.
The other eight victims have not been named.
Gadelha grew up in Palm Beach County. She earned her private pilot's licence in October 2023, while still a 17 year old senior at West Boca Raton High School.
The county school district paid for her training through its Aviation Academy.
She had also logged 88 hours of flight time.
Her father had been flying for fun since 2018, which helped spark her interest.
In a local news interview in 2023, she joked that she could fly planes before she could drive.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.
One former pilot, Martin Varsavsky, suggested that bad weather may have pushed the jet into a "coffin corner," a dangerous situation at high altitude where the safe speed range becomes very narrow and a plane can quickly lose control.
He said storms near the flight path may have been a factor, though that remains unconfirmed.