Joe Mixon, a two-time NFL Pro Bowl running back, came to the harsh realization he had been aboard the private jet that plunged out of the sky and crashed onto a Florida highway.
The former Cincinnati Bengals and Houston Texans star wrote on social media on Monday he was on the same plane about a month ago.
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“Absolutely devastated by yesterday’s tragic plane crash in Florida and the loss of all nine lives,” he wrote on X. “I flew on that exact aircraft last month with those same two pilots. They were incredible professionals and genuinely wonderful people. Hearing the young woman’s story and learning about the bright future she had ahead of her makes it even more heartbreaking that her life was cut so short.
“My heart, thoughts, and prayers go out to the grieving families and loved ones of everyone on board. A tragic reminder of how fragile life is. Love on your loved ones while you can, because you never know what tomorrow may bring.”
The Learjet 60 crashed in a Palm Beach County neighborhood on Sunday. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Monday there were indications the jet was breaking apart before the fiery wreck and that investigators were zeroing in on weather conditions being a major factor in the incident.
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“The weather conditions are a major focus of the investigation,” NTSB member Tom Chapman said at a news conference. “You all saw what the weather was like here at the surface. What we have to determine is what the weather conditions were like at altitude.”
Later Monday, the nine victims of the crash were identified.
Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras, 20, was the co-pilot, Jeff Gregory, 55, was the pilot in charge, Adam Robinson, 45, was a Texas tech entrepreneur and was traveling with his wife Helen Sharp and their two children and Rachael Reed and Charmi Fehr, who were traveling together and building their lives together.
Gadelha Filgueiras was an aspiring commercial pilot from Palm Beach County who earned her private pilot’s license at 17, before she got her driver’s license. Filgueiras trained through her high school’s aviation academy and later graduated from American Flyers flight school.
Fox News’ Greg Wehner contributed to this report.