Med Jets Flight 056

Meteorological data recorded by the National Weather Service indicated the presence of light rain, overcast and foggy conditions, and a wind gust recorded just before 6 p.m. in Philadelphia. Visibility was estimated at . Aircraft The aircraft involved in the medical evacuation was a Learjet 55 air ambulance operated by Jet Rescue Air Ambulance. It was registered as XA-UCI, Jet Rescue identified the crew as Captain Alan Alejandro Montoya Perales, with 9,200 flight hours. Co-pilot Josué Juárez had 2,600 flight hours. Dr. Meza Arredondo was the chief of neonatology at XE Médica Ambulancias and also practiced at a hospital in Atizapán de Zaragoza. The co-pilot, a resident of central Mexico with over ten years of flying experience, had been with Jet Rescue for more than a year. == Accident ==

footage of Flight 056 crashing At 6:07 pm EST (UTC−5) on Friday, January 31, 2025, the Learjet 55 crashed near Roosevelt Mall at Cottman Avenue and Roosevelt Boulevard, with the aircraft and debris hitting several buildings. The aircraft took off from Northeast Philadelphia Airport on a southwest heading, climbed to , disappeared from radar,The aircraft descended at a rate of around . The crash was the second fatal accident involving Jet Rescue in 15 months, following a November 2023 runway excursion at Cuernavaca Airport in Mexico that killed four people. The crash was the first of two fatal Mexican medevac flights in 2025, the other crashing in December on approach to Scholes International Airport at Galveston. == Victims ==

On February 4, Jet Rescue Air Ambulance released the names of the crew and passengers aboard the flight: captain Alan Alejandro Montoya Perales, co-pilot Josué de Jesús Juárez Juárez, Dr. Raúl Meza Arredondo, paramedic Rodrigo López Padilla, pediatric patient Valentina Guzmán Murillo and her mother Lizeth Murillo Ozuna. One person in a car was killed. along with several businesses, and ignited several homes and businesses in the Roosevelt Mall area, and vehicles. The fire spread to nearby row homes. Twenty-four people on the ground were injured, at least three of them critically. The injured included a person eating in a diner who was struck in the head by crash debris that hurtled through a window. == Aftermath ==

The FAA ordered a ground stop at Northeast Philadelphia Airport. The Philadelphia Police Department initiated a citywide emergency response to stop the spread of fires. Philadelphia's Office of Emergency Management closed roads near the crash site and kept citizens away from the scene. == Investigation ==

investigators at the crash scene on February 2 The FAA announced that it would investigate the crash, with the lead of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The NTSB stated that an investigator had arrived on January 31 and more officials would arrive on February 1. On March 6, the NTSB announced in the crash preliminary report that the cockpit voice recorder had not recorded the flight and had likely been inoperative for several years. == Responses ==

President Donald Trump was briefed on the situation. Commenting on Truth Social, he described the accident as a tragic loss of "innocent souls" and commended the efforts of first responders. Trump stated, "Our people are totally engaged," and added, "God Bless you all." described the situation as an active emergency response with reported mass casualties. He urged the public to avoid the area and highlighted the focus on supporting first responders and affected families. State Representative Jared Solomon, who represents the district where the crash occurred, described the neighborhood as a working-class area of dense row homes, telling the AP, "These are just people who want to help others. They're nurses, they're construction workers, they are first responders. In a community that is always poised to help others in and around our city, now we sort of are able to turn inward and all unite together." Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum expressed condolences to the crash fatalities and ordered the Secretary of Foreign Affairs to assist their families. == See also ==