Pro Bowl NFL star Joe Mixon has revealed that he recently flew on the same private jet that crashed in Florida, killing all nine people on board. Mixon shared his connection to the tragedy in a social media post, expressing his devastation and paying tribute to the pilots.
"My heart, thoughts, and prayers go out to the grieving families and loved ones of everyone on board," Mixon wrote on X. "A tragic reminder of how fragile life is. Love on your loved ones while you can, because you never know what tomorrow may bring."
Mixon stated that he flew on the aircraft last month with the same two pilots. He described them as "incredible professionals and genuinely wonderful people." One of the pilots has been identified as Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, 20, who earned her pilot's license at 17 and was working for private charter firm Upper Jets. The captain has been named as Jeff Gregory, 55.
The Learjet 60 crashed on Sunday in Palm Beach, descending 27,000 feet in one minute before impacting the ground. The victims included businessman Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, their two young children, Emma, four, and Charlie, two, their nanny Anita Maria Cetina, and another couple, Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr.
Federal authorities are investigating the cause of the crash. Officials with the National Transportation Safety Board indicated that severe weather may have been a significant factor, noting that a portion of the jet appeared to have broken off before impact. The pilots had reportedly requested to gain altitude when they encountered a thunderstorm, moments before the aircraft went down. Some aviation experts have speculated that the plane might have entered a state known as 'coffin corner,' a condition where aircraft flying at high altitudes experience a narrow margin between stalling and overspeeding.