‼️ THE HATE DIRECTED AT 20-YEAR-OLD CO-PILOT NATHALIA FILGUEIRAS IS ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING!!!
I woke up this morning absolutely disgusted by the number of negative comments I’ve seen directed at 20-year-old Nathalia Filgueiras, the co-pilot who tragically lost her life in Sunday’s plane crash in Palm Beach County, Florida.
I’ve seen countless people questioning why a 20-year-old would be allowed to co-pilot a private jet, suggesting she was inexperienced, and even going so far as to blame her for the crash.
Are you kidding me?!?!
First of all, Nathalia was NOT the pilot in command of that aircraft. She was the first officer, serving alongside 55-year-old Captain Jeffrey Gregory, an experienced pilot who had spent decades in aviation.
And for those questioning her qualifications simply because of her age, perhaps you should learn a little more about her before making those assumptions.
She earned her private pilot’s license in September 2023, when she was just 17 years old. At that point, she had already logged 88 hours of flight time.
By the age of 20, she had approximately 1,300 HOURS OF FLIGHT EXPERIENCE!!
Just because someone is young does not automatically mean they are unqualified. Pilots must meet specific training, certification, and aircraft qualification requirements. Age alone does not determine someone’s abilities in the cockpit.
More importantly, the cause of this crash hasn’t even been determined yet. There is absolutely NO evidence at this point that Nathalia’s age or experience caused this tragedy.
What we do know is that she was facing an absolutely TERRIFYING situation, and she continued communicating critical information to air traffic controllers as the aircraft rapidly descended.
While Captain Gregory could be heard praying during the emergency, Nathalia relayed information about the aircraft’s condition and its rapidly deteriorating situation.
Think about that for a second.
She was TWENTY YEARS OLD.
She knew she was about to die, yet she continued carrying out her responsibilities under circumstances most of us could never begin to imagine. What would you do if you knew you would be dead within seconds and there was NOTHING you could do about it except wait for it to happen?
I can tell you that personally that the radio would be the last thing on my mind. I would have been completely panicked, screaming, crying and probably wouldn’t have been able to even speak. The terror and sadness would have consumed me.
The aircraft was flying sideways and almost straight down at dangerously high speeds. Despite the chaos, Nathalia’s communications provided information that investigators may be able to use to better understand what happened.
Those transmissions could potentially help aviation safety experts identify contributing factors and develop recommendations to prevent similar tragedies!!
And instead of recognizing her composure during an UNIMAGINEBLE emergency, people are sitting behind their phones criticizing her age and blaming her for something that hasn’t even been explained yet?!?!
It’s absolutely ridiculous.
Imagine being her mother or father and reading those comments.
Nobody knows exactly what happened inside that cockpit or what caused the aircraft to lose control. That is precisely why the National Transportation Safety Board is conducting an investigation.
Until investigators determine what happened, blaming either pilot is irresponsible. But either way, the pilot began to pray, and she continued communicating up until the very last millisecond.
She is a HERO and should be remembered as one. ❤️