The flight instructor who helped Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras develop as a pilot is remembering her as a talented young aviator with a deep love of flying.
Filgueiras, 20, was among nine people killed when a Learjet 60 crashed near Greenacres in Palm Beach County, Florida, on November 1. The plane had departed from Austin, Texas, and was headed to the Bahamas. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.
A mentor remembers his student
Christopher Kirk, one of Filgueiras’ former instructors, began teaching her when she was 17. He recalled her enthusiasm for flying and her eagerness to practice challenging maneuvers. During one training session, she performed so many spins in a small plane that Kirk eventually had to stop because he felt sick.
Kirk also praised her skill. He said an examiner was impressed by her performance during her Learjet 60 check ride and believed she had much more flight experience than she did. Filgueiras’ family has also defended her qualifications, noting that she had completed extensive training and logged more than 1,300 hours.
Nine people lost in the Florida crash
Filgueiras was the co-pilot on the flight. Captain Jeff Gregory was also aboard, along with passengers Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, their children Emma and Charlie, their nanny Anita Maria Cetina, and family friends Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr. All nine people aboard died.
As the jet encountered icing and turbulence, the crew made emergency radio calls while the aircraft began descending rapidly. Investigators have not yet determined what caused the crash.
Remembering her love of flying
Kirk said Filgueiras’ deliberate radio communications during the emergency may help investigators piece together what happened. He has left questions about the crash’s cause to investigators.
He hopes people remember Filgueiras for her warmth, talent and dedication to aviation. To those who knew her, she was a young woman who pursued flying with determination and found joy in the career she had worked toward.
Our thoughts are with the families, friends and loved ones of everyone who died in the crash.