Florida plane crash: tech boss, his wife and two young children among nine killed

Updated 3 Nov 2026, 09:24 · First published 3 Nov 2026

A Texas tech entrepreneur, his wife and their two young children were among nine people killed when a private jet nosedived and exploded in a fireball beside a busy road in Florida. The Learjet 60 came down in Greenacres, Palm Beach County, at about 12:50pm on Sunday 1 November. Everyone on board died.

Who were the victims of the Florida plane crash?

The passengers were Austin tech entrepreneur Adam Robinson, 44, his wife Helen Sharp, their children Emma, 4, and Charlie, 2, the family’s nanny Anita Maria Cetina, and two family friends, Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr. The plane was flown by captain Jeff Gregory, 55, and co-pilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, 20.

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Who was Adam Robinson?

Adam Robinson was a technology entrepreneur based in Austin, Texas. He founded the marketing technology companies Retention.com and RB2B, and earlier co-founded the email marketing firm Robly. Before that he worked in finance at Lehman Brothers and Barclays Capital. His wife, Helen Sharp, ran her own ceramics business. The family were flying to the Bahamas.

In April, Robinson posted on X: “You don’t need to crash a plane to learn to fly… and you don’t need VC to build a business.” The post has since been widely shared.

Who was the co-pilot?

Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras was just 20. She earned her pilot’s licence at 17 through a high school aviation programme, before she had even graduated, and had reportedly logged more than 1,300 flying hours. Her father, Allan Filgueiras, confirmed she was the co-pilot. Her mother told The New York Times she “loved the freedom” of flying. In an air traffic control recording reported by IBTimes, a female voice can be heard saying: “We’re going to crash into the ground.”

Who was the pilot, Jeff Gregory?

Captain Jeff Gregory, 55, came from the Royersford-Limerick area of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. He was a husband to his wife, Cheryl, and a father of three. Friends say he dreamed of flying from childhood: a classmate and longtime neighbour, David Peters, described him to The US Sun as “very diligent and dependable”, a boy who loved wearing his leather bomber jacket.

A lifelong Christian who grew up attending Limerick Chapel, Gregory began his aviation training in the 1990s and built his career around flying. In a Facebook tribute, a cousin asked people to “pray for Cheryl, their three children, and everyone who loved Captain Jeff Gregory”. The NTSB says the jet, registration N722BD, was operated by Aurora Aviation, trading as Upper Jet.

Who were the nanny and the family friends?

Anita Maria Cetina looked after Emma and Charlie as the family’s nanny. Relatives described her as part of the family and paid tribute to the love and care she gave the children. Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr, close friends of Adam and Helen, were travelling with them to the Bahamas.

What caused the Florida jet crash?

The cause has not been confirmed and the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is investigating. The jet was cruising east at 35,000 feet when the pilots reported turbulence, icing and rain and asked to climb to 37,000 feet. Moments later it went into a steep dive, at times descending at up to 30,000 feet per minute, well beyond what the aircraft was designed for. The crew declared an emergency before the plane banked sharply and hit the ground.

At a news conference on Monday, NTSB board member Tom Chapman said evidence at the scene suggested the aircraft was breaking up before impact, and that investigators may find parts of the plane some distance from the crash site. The NTSB also said ice began forming on the jet during moderate turbulence.

Was anyone hurt on the ground?

Florida governor Ron DeSantis, who called it “a cataclysmic plane crash”, said there were no immediate reports of anyone on the ground being hurt. The jet narrowly missed homes and left a crater beside the road. Around 600 people from a nearby mobile home park were evacuated, and the road was closed. US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy described the crash as a “horrific tragedy”.

What happens next?

NTSB investigators will examine the wreckage, flight data and air traffic recordings. A preliminary report is usually published within about 30 days, with a final report on the cause taking a year or more.

Sources: Associated Press via PBS NewsHour, ABC News, Metro, TMZ, VIN News, Greek City Times, Daily Voice, IBTimes. Photos: family handouts.