Florida plane audio reveals harrowing moments before deadly crash - USA Today

The pilot of a business jet that crashed in South Florida on Nov. 1 was captured on cockpit audio shouting expletives in the harrowing moments before the deadly disaster.

"We're out of time," the pilot said in a final transmission moments before the Learjet 60 crashed in Palm Beach County, Florida, around 12:50 p.m. ET, killing all nine people on board.

The plane was traveling from Austin to the Bahamas, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The crash occurred in an unincorporated area between Greenacres and Palm Springs and scattered debris across a wide area, causing extensive damage, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said during a brief news conference.

While there were no immediate reports of anyone on the ground injured or killed in the incident, about 600 residents in the area were evacuated from their homes and relocated to local shelters because of the large investigation scene, Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores said.

The FAA and National Transportation Safety Board are investigating the crash.

Prior to the crash, an audio recording from the plane captured a person in the cockpit reporting they were encountering "moderate" turbulence and "managing the ice."

Less than a minute later, the pilot issued a mayday call and reported that the plane was descending at 10,000 feet per minute, according to the recording posted by LiveATC, a website that broadcasts air traffic control communications.

"We're going to crash into the ground," they said frantically seconds later, reporting the aircraft was descending at 22,000 feet per minute.

The last cockpit transmission – about 35 seconds after the initial distress call – was: "We're out of time."

Listen to the full audio in the clip above.

According to flight-tracking website Flightradar24, the aircraft's vertical descent rate at one point exceeded 32,000 feet per minute.

DeSantis and Flores both said the crash left a "massive crater" in the ground that will take time to fix.

"It looked like a missile going down. It left a big crater on the side of the road," DeSantis said, describing the accident as a "cataclysmic plane crash."

Images and videos posted on social media showed what appeared to be an impact crater as well as fires and debris strewn across the neighborhood in the area of the crash.

The Military Trail, a major roadway in the area, was closed as investigators secured the scene, and officials warned that the impacts could be prolonged.

"I don't see it open in the next 30 days," Flores said of the closure.