Co-pilot's father defends daughter's skill

The father of the 20-year-old co-pilot who died in a Learjet crash in Florida is challenging online critics who question her experience. Allan Filgueiras, a pilot himself, stated Friday that he has reviewed his daughter's final radio transmissions multiple times. He said the recordings demonstrated her capability to handle the emergency.

Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras died on Sunday when the aircraft crashed in Florida. She was one of nine people killed in the incident. Filgueiras said he listened to the audio in an attempt to understand the sequence of events. He expressed pride in how she managed the situation before the plane fell from the sky.

"I did listen to that many times trying to find a clue. In my head. How’d that happen? And wow, she’s tough," Filgueiras said at a news conference Friday. He frequently held back tears while speaking.

The radio exchanges show the co-pilot calmly reporting ice buildup on the aircraft. The Learjet had flown into a thunderstorm, and turbulence caused the plane to move up and down by 700 feet. The situation deteriorated rapidly as the aircraft entered an overspeed condition.

"Declare an emergency 722-Bravo-Delta. We are in an overspeed condition descending 20,000 feet per minute!" she said in her final transmission. Aviation safety experts noted that she continued to provide updates even as the plane's fate became apparent.

Filgueiras addressed the family's grief during the event. "For the family, it’s like having the heart torn from my chest," he said in Spanish. "I have to find a way to go on living."

The family is pushing back against criticism regarding the co-pilot's age. Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras had more than 1,300 hours of experience. She completed extensive training to earn her commercial pilot’s license. Her attorney, Stuart Grossman, said the news conference was designed to preserve her memory and reputation.

"She was at the top of her class in everything that she did, and she was perfectly qualified to be the co-pilot on this flight, despite her tender years," Grossman said. He noted that there were no immediate plans to file a lawsuit over the crash.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the cause of the crash. It is too early to determine what went wrong. The Learjet accelerated beyond its design limits as it fell. Pieces of the tail were found miles away from the crash site.

John Cox, a retired airline pilot and CEO of Safety Operating Systems, compared Filgueiras to his own career start. He began flying professionally at age 19. "To be in the right seat of a Lear 60, she had to impress somebody, because that’s a good ride. I mean, that’s great. I know she loved it," Cox said.

The other victims included technology entrepreneur Adam Robinson, his wife Helen Sharp, and their two young children. The family’s nanny, Ana María Ramírez Cetina, was also killed. The 55-year-old captain, Jeff Gregory, was at the controls during the descent.

Filgueiras believes his daughter performed better than most pilots in a similar crisis. "She showed me what it is to be a hero because once you see that coming, a lot of the big boys, military or whatever, they can’t handle. And she was the one over there to the last minute fighting," he said.