Jeffrey Gregory, the pilot heard reciting the Lord’s Prayer in haunting cockpit audio moments before a Learjet 60 plunged toward the ground in Florida, has been remembered by friends and his church as a deeply committed Christian.
Gregory, 55, of Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, was flying the business jet on Sunday afternoon when it crashed in a fireball near West Palm Beach, Florida. All nine people aboard were killed.
The flight was carrying technology entrepreneur Adam Robinson, 45, his wife, Helen Sharp, 40, and their young children, Emma, four, and Charlie, two. The family was traveling from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas to celebrate Robinson’s birthday when the tragedy unfolded, TMZ reports.
Robinson’s friends Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr were also aboard, along with the children’s nanny, Anita Maria Cetina.
As federal investigators examine why the aircraft descended at an estimated 20,000 feet per minute, the Limerick Chapel, where Gregory had grown up, said he had “gone home to be with the Lord.”
David Peters, a longtime friend and former neighbor, described Gregory as “very diligent and dependable.”
Peters told the US Sun that Gregory, who had three adult children, dreamed of becoming a pilot from an early age. He also recalled how much Gregory enjoyed wearing his “leather bomber jacket.”
Federal Aviation Administration records indicate that Gregory received his Airline Transportation Pilot certificate on October 1, 2021. His qualifications covered several types of jets, including the Learjet 60.
He also held a First Class medical certificate issued in June 2026.
Jeffrey Gregory, 55, of Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, was piloting a Learjet 60 when it plunged into a road near West Palm Beach, Florida, on Sunday afternoon. He is pictured with his wife, Cheryl. Source: JeffnCheryl Corbin-Gregory/Facebook
Adam Robinson, 45, and his wife, Helen Sharp, 40, were traveling with their children, Emma, four, and Charlie, two, when the Learjet 60 crashed
A meteorologist suggested the doomed Learjet may have flown into the center of a thunderstorm before crashing in Palm Beach, Florida
According to his LinkedIn profile, Gregory worked for Allentown-based East Coast Aviation from 2016 to 2017 and later served as a flight instructor. He had accumulated decades of aviation experience.
After news of the crash emerged, friends posted messages of grief on the joint Facebook page belonging to Gregory and his wife, Cheryl.
“Our hearts are breaking for you, Cheryl,” one friend wrote. “Praying that you will know the hope and comfort that only our Savior can give.”
Another said she imagined Gregory “bowing his head and closing his eyes, preparing his heart to see Jesus while praying The Lord’s Prayer.”
“And as his co-pilot was yelling at him to look out the window, I am sure he was praying for you, Cheryl, and your beautiful family.”
The exact cause of the crash remains unknown. The Learjet struck the ground in Greenacres, Florida, leaving a huge crater and damaging infrastructure in the surrounding area.
The jet had been traveling east across Florida at 35,000 feet when co-pilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras warned air traffic controllers that the aircraft was descending.
“Descending 20,000ft per minute… we’re going to crash into the ground,” Filgueiras said, while Gregory could be heard reciting the Lord’s Prayer in the background.
Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, 20, was co-piloting the Learjet 60 and was heard warning air traffic control that the aircraft was going down
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Disturbing dashcam footage showed the Learjet 60 diving into an intersection before erupting in flames
Cockpit recordings captured Filgueiras trying to explain the emergency to air traffic control during the final moments of the flight.
She reported that the plane had reached a 60-degree bank, indicating it was tilted sharply to one side, while also relaying changes in altitude.
Our News Outlet has chosen not to broadcast the final seconds of the recording because of its extremely distressing content.
In messages sent shortly before the crash, Filgueiras also warned her boyfriend, fellow pilot Justin, that the aircraft was encountering dangerous weather.
Her family told the New York Post that she texted him: “I’ve got turbulence, I’ve got ice.”
The National Transportation Safety Board has said severe weather may have been a “significant factor” in the disaster. Investigators also believe part of the jet may have separated before impact. The crash site was only about eight miles from President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club.
Trump and Air Force One departed Palm Beach International Airport roughly an hour before the crash as the president sought to build Republican support ahead of Tuesday’s midterm elections.
Robinson’s friends, Rachel Reed and Charmi Fehr, pictured, were among those killed in the crash
The family’s nanny, Anita Maria Apellido Cetina, pictured, was also aboard. Her loved ones said she leaves behind a “legacy of unconditional love and devotion”
Some aviation specialists have suggested that the jet may have encountered “coffin corner” while attempting to climb above two storm systems, or cells.
The term describes a dangerous situation at high altitude in which an aircraft’s minimum safe speed and maximum safe speed come dangerously close together, leaving pilots with very little room to maneuver.
If the aircraft slows too much or accelerates beyond its safe range, it can stall and become uncontrollable within seconds.
While the NTSB continues investigating the Learjet crash, the families of Adam and Helen remembered them as devoted parents whose children “were the light of their lives.”
“Helen and Adam were the love affair that will last forever,” their families said in a joint statement. “Their warmth, generosity and gift for making people feel welcome touched so many lives. Their loss will be felt deeply by all those who loved them and whom they loved in return.”
The crash impact carved a large crater into the center of the road and damaged nearby infrastructure
The statement added: “Charmi and Rachel were full of joy and adventure. They loved their people fiercely, fully and without hesitation. From the moment they met, they were all in on each other and the life they were building. They are deeply loved, and we will miss them endlessly.”
“Anita Maria cared for Emma and Charlie with tenderness and devotion, and she was truly part of the family. She showed us a legacy of unconditional love and devotion.”
“On behalf of friends and family, it is with a heavy heart that we share that our dearest Helen was taken from us too soon,” her family said in a separate statement.
“To know Helen was to love her. The number of people grieving Helen and Adam is a testament to how many people were lucky enough to have them in their lives.”
