“She Was My Soulmate”: Father of 20-Year-Old Pilot Killed in Florida Learjet 𝔠r𝘢sh Shares Heartbreaking Final Memories

The father of Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, the 20-year-old co-pilot killed in a devastating Florida Learjet 𝔠r𝘢sh, has spoken publicly about his loss, describing his daughter as his “soulmate” and revealing how he has repeatedly listened to the final radio transmissions from the aircraft.

Nathalia was one of nine people killed when a Learjet 60 plunged into a roadway in Greenacres, Palm Beach County, on November 1. The aircraft was travelling from Texas toward the Bahamas when it crashed, leaving a massive crater and scattering wreckage across the surrounding area.

For Allan Filgueiras, a pilot who introduced his daughter to aviation when she was just 12, the tᩚraɢedy has destroyed a bond built around their shared love of flying.

Speaking at a news conference on November 6, Allan struggled to hold back tears as he remembered the young woman who had followed him into the skies.

“She’s my soulmate,” he said, explaining that aviation had always been at the centre of their relationship. The two would often fly together, sometimes taking spontaneous trips to places such as Key West and Naples simply to enjoy a coffee or a meal.

He recalled how their roles eventually changed. When Nathalia was learning to fly, he instructed her. As her skills developed, she began training him, running him through difficult flight scenarios and helping him sharpen his abilities.

Nathalia earned her pilot’s licence at 17 and had accumulated more than 1,300 flight hours by the time of the 𝔠r𝘢sh. Her family and representatives have pushed back against online criticism questioning whether she was sufficiently experienced to serve as co-pilot on a high-performance business jet.

Her attorney, Stuart Grossman, said she had completed the required training and was qualified for the position. He explained that the family’s news conference was intended to protect her reputation as well as preserve her memory. The family has not announced plans to file a lawsuit and said it intends to wait for the findings of the official investigation.

One of the most painful experiences for Allan has been listening repeatedly to the aircraft’s final radio communications. He said he has searched the recordings for clues that might help him understand what happened, while also feeling pride in the way his daughter responded during the emergency.

According to the recorded communications described by investigators and news organizations, Nathalia initially reported icing and turbulence as the aircraft encountered worsening weather. The situation then deteriorated rapidly.

She informed air traffic control that the jet was descending at an alarming rate and declared an emergency. In one of the final transmissions, she reported an overspeed condition while the aircraft was descending at approximately 20,000 feet per minute.

Her father said hearing those moments left him amazed by her determination.

“She showed me what it is to be a hero,” he said, praising the way she continued communicating during the unfolding emergency.

He also described the pain of knowing he could not have been beside her.

“I wanted to be by her side. Inside the plane. To help,” he said, struggling through tears.

The last days they spent together have taken on an especially painful significance. Allan recalled that he and Nathalia had spent an afternoon together at a boat show and shared lunch just four days before the 𝔠r𝘢sh. He remembered telling her that it was one of the best days of his life.

He said he experienced a brief, unusual feeling of sadness after they parted, although he had no reason to believe it would be their final time together.

The tᩚraɢedy has also prompted difficult questions about the aircraft’s final moments. The National Transportation Safety Board is examining the wreckage, weather conditions and the sequence of events that led to the jet’s rapid descent.

Investigators have recovered parts of the aircraft’s engine and sections of its left elevator, a control surface on the tail that helps regulate the aircraft’s pitch. Pieces of the elevator were found between approximately 1.3 and 3.8 miles from the 𝔠r𝘢sh site, indicating that they separated from the aircraft before impact.

However, investigators have not determined whether the separation caused the aircraft to lose control or occurred as a result of the forces acting on it during the descent. The precise cause of the 𝔠r𝘢sh remains undetermined.

The other eight people aboard the aircraft also lost their lives, including technology entrepreneur Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, their two young children, Emma and Charlie, their nanny Ana María Ramírez Cetina, and family friends Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr.

For Allan, the investigation may eventually provide answers, but it cannot bring back the daughter whose life revolved around the skies.

He has said he must find a way to continue living for his family, even as he struggles with a loss he describes as almost impossible to bear.

Nathalia’s final flight has left investigators searching for answers and nine families mourning loved ones. But her father hopes that when people remember her, they will see more than a young pilot caught in a terrible disaster. He wants them to remember a talented woman who pursued her dream, shared her passion with her father and continued fighting through the final moments of an emergency.

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