The Smart Marty Sky Dispatch
Voice recorder from US jet crash that killed 9 recovered
It could provide crucial details about what the pilots said to each other as they encountered turbulence, ice formed on the wings, and they lost control of the aircraft.
The National Transportation Safety Board said it has recovered the cockpit voice recorder from a business jet that crashed in Florida last week, killing all nine people on board. The device was found at the site where the Learjet struck the ground and erupted in a fireball on November 1.
Investigators noted that recovering data from the cockpit voice recorder could provide crucial details about conversations between the pilots as they faced severe weather, turbulence, and wing icing before losing control. It was not immediately known whether the recorder was damaged or became functional prior to the crash.
The NTSB indicated the device is being evaluated at a lab in Washington. Photos posted by the agency showed an orange-painted metal shell, and aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti said the equipment appeared in decent condition and could potentially yield useful information if it is from the accident flight.
Witness video and air traffic control transmissions captured the moments as the pilots realized their situation. Investigators have said pieces of a key tail component, the elevator, were found kilometers from the main crater, suggesting the aircraft began to break apart before impact.