Jeff Gregory, Pilot of Learjet Crash in Florida, Died Sunday

Jeff Gregory died Sunday afternoon when the Learjet 60 he piloted crashed in Greenacres, Florida. The impact killed all nine people on board the aircraft, which was traveling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas.

Gregory, 55, lived in Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, about 35 miles northwest of Philadelphia. He was one of two crew members in the cockpit. His co-pilot, 20-year-old Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, reported to air traffic control that ice was building up on the plane. She also described severe turbulence that moved the aircraft up and down by more than 700 feet.

Federal investigators stated Monday that parts of the jet likely broke off before it struck the ground. Video from the moment before impact appears to show the horizontal stabilizer missing from the tail. The plane hit the earth with enough force to create a crater before bursting into flames. Fragments scattered across a large area. About 600 nearby residents remain displaced, though only one person on the ground was injured.

During the final radio transmissions, a man’s voice was heard reciting the Lord’s Prayer. Friends believe it was Gregory. Thomas Noetzel, director of operations at Upper Jets, the company that operated the flight, organized a fundraiser to support Gregory’s wife and children. Noetzel called Gregory a close friend on the GoFundMe page. He wrote that knowing Gregory had made him a better person.

Walter Noetzel, Thomas’s father, posted on Facebook that Gregory was a devoted and faithful man with a strong love for the Lord. He described Gregory as someone who had a genuine passion for flying. Walter said he believes Gregory is now flying among the angels in the presence of God.

Gregory held airline transport pilot and flight instructor certificates according to Federal Aviation Administration records. He previously worked for a charter company in Allentown, Pennsylvania. April Honnen, director of charter sales for East Coast Jets, said the company was deeply saddened by the loss. She noted that Gregory worked for them in 2016 and 2017.

The victims included technology entrepreneur Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, and their two young children. NTSB member Tom Chapman said weather will be a key focus of the investigation. A preliminary report is expected in about a month. Determining the cause of the crash will likely take more than a year.