Seven passengers identified in fatal South Florida Learjet crash

By Daniel Okafor

Who died in the South Florida Learjet crash?

Seven passengers were killed when a private Learjet crashed and exploded near West Palm Beach on Sunday, according to a statement from their families.

The statement identified Adam Robinson, his wife, Helen Sharp, their children, 4-year-old Emma and 2-year-old Charlie, and Anita Maria Cetina, who helped care for the children. It also named Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr.

Reed and Fehr were a couple. Their family described them as full of joy and adventure, loving each other fiercely and building a life together. Their relationship with Robinson and Sharp was not immediately clear.

Two crew members also died. One was 20-year-old copilot Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras. Public disclosures have not identified the pilot, the second crew member.

What was Adam Robinson's business role?

Robinson, 45, was the founder and CEO of RB2B and Retention.com, and the CEO of Moltsets, according to his LinkedIn page. He previously worked at global financial services business Lehman Brothers and banking group Barclays.

The Associated Press reported that Robinson was known in Austin, Texas, where Retention.com was based. His death marked the second time that year Austin lost a tech entrepreneur in a plane crash.

The earlier loss came in June, when Joshua Baer died. Baer led a venture capital firm that supported technology startups, AP reported. Austin Technology Council CEO Thom Singer told AP that Robinson was part of Austin's entrepreneurial fabric.

Robinson lived in Aspen, Colorado, with his family and recently discussed that life on the ProfitLed podcast. “I feel like I’m living the dream,” Robinson said.

He said the routine let him see his children in the morning and evening, reduced his travel for work and made his wife happy because she could work as a full-time artist.

How was the copilot certified?

Her family identified Filgueiras as the copilot flying the Learjet from Austin, Texas, to the Bahamas on Sunday when it crashed and exploded near West Palm Beach. The family said she had been a licensed pilot since she was a teenager.

Filgueiras earned her license in 2023, at 17, while a senior at West Boca Raton Community High School. Her pilot's license showed that she carried the rating to fly the jet, but not to be in command.

Her license set her role: she could fly the Learjet as copilot but could not command it. The distinction placed her in the cockpit without giving her authority to serve as the flight's commander.

The Palm Beach County School District paid for Filgueiras's license through the high school's specialized aviation academy. Students in that program practiced flying on simulators and drones.

“Some people think that it’s weird that I can fly planes, but I can’t drive a car,” Filgueiras told WPEC-TV in 2023. “I think that it’s funny.”

What remains unresolved?

The family disclosures settled the identities of seven passengers and one crew member. They left the wider relationship among the passengers unclear. The stated links were Robinson's family unit, Cetina's childcare role and the Reed-Fehr couple.

Separate linked reporting based on the National Transportation Safety Board said the Learjet may have broken up before the fatal Florida crash. Other linked coverage said air traffic control audio and dashcam videos captured the final moments of the flight.

Two factual gaps remain. One concerns the identity of the pilot in command. The other concerns the sequence behind the NTSB's report that the Learjet may have broken up. The next phase should test that possibility against the recorded air traffic control audio and dashcam evidence.

Until then, the family disclosures establish who was aboard, while the command pilot and the cause of the crash remain open questions. The next disclosure that matters is the command pilot's identity, while the reported breakup still has to be tested against the air traffic control audio and dashcam record.