Florida plane crash: Learjet carrying 9 people crashes into South Florida neighbourhood, all on board killed

Fflorida plane crash. (Image: X handle)

A business jet carrying nine people crashed into a neighbourhood in South Florida on Sunday, bursting into a massive fireball and killing everyone on board, according to US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.

The Bahamas-bound Learjet 60 plunged from the sky and crashed near a busy roadway in Palm Beach County. The aircraft exploded on impact, with flames and thick black smoke engulfing the crash site.

Duffy confirmed the incident in a post on X, describing it as a “horrific tragedy”. He said the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was sending a team to support the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in its investigation into the crash.

Videos recorded by people inside their vehicles captured the terrifying moment the aircraft nose-dived towards the ground before striking near the roadway and exploding into a fireball.

The impact left a crater surrounded by chunks of pavement, while flames continued to flicker around the crash site. Thick black smoke spread across the area following the explosion.

People at the scene expressed shock that the aircraft had crashed just feet away from nearby homes and inches from passing vehicles.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said there were no immediate reports of anyone on the ground injured or killed, according to AP.

“It was a cataclysmic plane crash,” DeSantis told reporters at the scene. “It looked like a missile going down and left a big crater on the side of the road.”

Rain pounded the region on Sunday. A flood watch due to excessive rainfall was in effect through Monday afternoon, the National Weather Service said.

The aircraft had departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in Texas and was headed to the Bahamas, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. Authorities did not immediately say what caused the jet to go down or who was on it.

The plane was heading east at 35,000 feet (about 11 kilometers) when pilots reported turbulence, icing and precipitation and requested to climb another 2,000 feet (about 610 meters).

With AP and Reuters inputs