NTSB Recovers Voice Recorder From Fatal Florida Learjet Crash

Investigators recovered the cockpit voice recorder from a business jet that crashed in Florida last week, killing all nine people on board. The National Transportation Safety Board said the device was found at the crash site in Greenacres.

The Bahamas-bound Learjet slammed into the ground and erupted in a fireball on Nov. 1 amid severe weather. Investigators said the jet plummeted from the sky as the pilots encountered turbulence and ice formed on the wings.

“It's very plausible that any info on the recorder survived.”

Photos posted online by the NTSB show the recorder's orange-painted metal shell appeared to be in decent shape. Aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti said it is very plausible that any information on the recorder survived.

The device was being evaluated at a lab in Washington, and it was not immediately known if it had been damaged or was working. If data can be recovered, it could provide crucial details about what the pilots said to each other.

Witnesses captured video of the jet plunging nose-first into the ground, and air traffic control transmissions recorded the pilots realizing their fate. The co-pilot told controllers the plane was being thrown up and down more than 700 feet.

Investigators said pieces of the tail's elevator, which controls the plane's pitch, were found more than a mile away from the main crater. This confirms the plane started to break apart before impact.

The recorder could shed light on why the Learjet appeared to steer around a large storm cell only to head directly into a rapidly developing smaller one.