The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Monday that investigators have recovered the cockpit voice recorder from the Learjet 60 that crashed near Greenacres, Florida, last week, killing all nine people aboard.
“NTSB investigators have recovered the cockpit voice recorder (CVR) of the Learjet 60 that crashed on Nov. 1 near Greenacres, Florida,” the agency said on X.
The recorder was located at the site of the aircraft’s initial impact, according to the NTSB.
It has been sent to the NTSB’s Vehicle Recorders Laboratory in Washington, D.C., where it is being evaluated.
Investigators have also completed excavation work at the crash site.
The development follows the recovery Friday of part of one of the Learjet’s engines, the NTSB said.
Crews began excavating Wednesday after utility workers drained standing water and removed other hazards from the area, according to the agency.
Once digging began, investigators located a section of an engine.
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Earlier last week, search teams recovered the left tail elevator, a flight-control surface that helps manage the aircraft’s pitch. The elevator was found in three pieces, including one located nearly four miles from the Learjet 60’s crash site.
“Even small pieces of the wreckage may contain important evidence that could help investigators determine what happened,” the agency said in a post on X last week.
The Learjet departed Austin-Bergstrom International Airport at about 10:37 a.m. Sunday, bound for North Eleuthera Airport in the Bahamas. Shortly before 1 p.m., the aircraft crashed in Palm Beach County, killing everyone on board.
Austin technology entrepreneur Adam Robinson, 45, died in the crash along with his wife, Helen Sharp, 40; their children, Emma, 4, and Charlie, 2; the children’s nanny, Anita Maria Cetina; and Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr.
Heavy rain and thunderstorms were reported across South Florida around the time of the crash. Investigators have said weather conditions will be a major focus of the investigation.
At an altitude of about 41,000 feet, an air traffic controller told the crew that moderate precipitation was approximately five miles ahead. The controller said the pilots could turn either left or right, while warning that the route toward Freeport in the Bahamas “looks pretty bad.”
The crew was later directed to fly toward a waypoint near Naples, Florida. Instead, the aircraft deviated toward Palm Beach County, where the pilots reported worsening weather. The crew told air traffic control they were encountering icing and turbulence and asked whether a “better ride” was available ahead.
Fox News’ Adam Sabes contributed to this report.
