Doomed Learjet pilot identified as woman aged just 20, as male co-pilot heard praying ‘Our Father’ during final seconds before crash that killed nine and experts say ‘coffin corner’ may be to blame

The pilot of a Learjet that crashed and killed nine was a 20-year-old woman, as audio revealed her co-pilot saying the Lord’s Prayer in their final moments. 

Nathalia Gadelha, 20, was piloting the Learjet 90 on Sunday when it crashed near West Palm Beach.  

Family members of Gadelha confirmed to The New York Post that she was behind the controls of the aircraft when it plummeted to the ground.

Gadelha grew up in Palm Beach County and previously featured in a local media report after first getting her pilot license in 2023 at the age of 17. 

She told CBS12: ‘I definitely do brag because people say, “Oh, you can’t drive,” and I’m like, “Yeah, but I can fly”.’ 

Her mother often shared images of Gadelha and her siblings traveling on private jets, with her father Allan also having his pilots license.

The male co-pilot, who has not been identified, could be heard saying ‘who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name’ in air traffic control audio released in the wake of Sunday’s crash in West Palm Beach, Florida. 

While the co-pilot prayed, Gadelha could be heard saying that the Learjet 90 had banked 60 degrees, meaning it was flying sideways. 

Moments later, the plane crashed in a fireball by the side of the road, killing all nine people who were on board. 

The identities of the rest onboard have yet to be released, with officials set to hold a press conference and share more information later on Monday.

Initial speculation has pointed to stormy weather as a possible cause for the crash, which happened as the $2 million business jet was flying from Austin in Texas to the Bahamas. 

Nathalia Gadelha, 20, was piloting the Learjet 90 on Sunday when it crashed near West Palm Beach

Experts have speculated that the jet, worth $2 million, was potentially downed by what is known as coffin corner

An investigation is now being carried out federal authorities to determine what went wrong

Some aviation experts have suggested the plane may have fallen foul of ‘coffin corner’ while trying to climb above two storm systems, known as cells. 

Coffin corner is a phenomenon whereby the jet’s minimum safe speed and maximum safe speed converge into a very narrow range at high altitude, making it extremely difficult to fly safely. 

If the plane goes too slow or fast it will stall and quickly become uncontrollable. 

Former pilot Martin Varsavsky, who now runs his own AI firm, posted to X saying that he believed that bad weather in the area could have caused the fatal error. 

He said: ‘The radars clearly showed those cells; in light jets, the rule is to deviate with a good margin, not to fly through them – this could be an error by the woman who was piloting. 

‘What storms do by changing the outside temperature is that airplanes can no longer stay aloft at the same speed. It’s called the coffin corner. Or they become very difficult to keep under control.’ 

Gadelha grew up in Palm Beach County and previously featured in a local media report after first getting her pilot license in 2023 at the age of 17

The impact left a massive crater in the middle of the road, damaging nearby infrastructure

The cause of the crash, which happened eight miles from President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago country club, remains unclear. The Federal Aviation Administration is sending a team to support the National Transportation Safety Board’s investigation, Secretary Sean Duffy confirmed on Sunday.

The air traffic controllers in nearby Miami had given pilots permission to ‘deviate left and right’ due to ‘moderate precipitation… to the southeast’ that they described as ‘pretty nasty’ as the twin-engine business jet approached the area.

The controllers were then heard describing ‘moderate turbulence’ before the Gadelha’s tone swiftly became panicked as she realized the plane was in trouble.

She said: ‘Seven two two bravo delta, we’re descending 8,000… mayday mayday… we’re descending 10,000ft per minute.’

Seconds later, she screamed: ‘Declaring emergency, declaring emergency, we are in an overspeed condition.’  

Her voice grew even more panicked as she said: ‘Descending 20,000ft per minute… we’re going to crash into the ground.’

‘I’m here with you, talk to me,’ the air traffic controller said in an attempt to calm the situation.

Gadelha said: ‘We are descending 22,000ft, and we are banking 60 degrees.’ 

‘We’re out of time,’ Gadelha then screamed in her final transmission.

Officials do not believe the road where the plane crashed will be open for another month

The Daily Mail has chosen not to publish the final seconds of audio which are extremely distressing.

Weather conditions in the West Palm Beach area on Sunday afternoon were poor, overcast with rain and lightning in the area and winds from the east at 15 mph, gusting to near 25 mph. The National Weather Service in Miami said visibility was seven miles.

The flight had set off from Austin, Texas, bound for North Eleuthera in the Bahamas before its path abruptly ended just near West Palm Beach, according to flight data.

The impact left debris scattered across a significant distance and a massive crater in the road, but authorities said nobody on the ground was injured or killed in the crash.