“THE MOST NATURALLY GIFTED PILOT I EVER TAUGHT”: FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR PAYS HEARTBREAKING TRIBUTE TO 20-YEAR-OLD LEARJET CO-PILOT KILLED IN FLORIDA CRASH

After 40 years of teaching aspiring aviators, flight instructor Christopher Kirk says he has never encountered a student quite like Nathalia Gadelha Filgueiras.

The 20-year-old co-pilot, who died alongside eight other people in a devastating Learjet 60 crash in Florida, is being remembered by her former instructor as an exceptionally talented pilot whose passion for flying began long before she was old enough to drive.

“She was without a doubt the most naturally gifted pilot I have ever taught,” Kirk wrote in a heartfelt tribute shared on social media. “That young lady was born to fly!”

His words offer a glimpse into the remarkable young woman behind the tragedy — a student who impressed experienced examiners, loved the challenge of flying and had worked hard to earn her place in the cockpit.

A passion for flying that started in her teenage years

Kirk, 69, told PEOPLE that he first became connected to Nathalia through her father, Allan Filgueiras, who was also a pilot. He later began teaching Nathalia when she was just 17.

Her interest in aviation was already clear. She earned her pilot’s license while still in high school — before obtaining her driver’s license.

Kirk remembered her as a student who was not simply interested in flying as a career, but genuinely loved being in the air.

He recalled taking her through aerobatic training in a Cessna 150 Aerobat. Nathalia particularly enjoyed practicing spins, repeatedly asking to do more until Kirk eventually had to stop because he was becoming nauseated.

The instructor recalled the memory with affection, saying she found it amusing that her enthusiasm had made him feel sick.

But beyond her energy and sense of adventure, Kirk said her flying ability consistently stood out.

An examiner reportedly thought she had thousands more flight hours

One of the most remarkable moments in Nathalia’s training came during her Learjet 60 qualification check ride in March 2026.

According to Kirk, she had logged fewer than 1,100 flight hours at the time, yet her performance impressed the examiner so much that he reportedly believed she had approximately 5,000 hours of experience.

Kirk said she passed the assessment with outstanding results and repeatedly impressed examiners during her flight evaluations.

The Associated Press later reported that Nathalia had accumulated more than 1,300 flight hours and completed extensive training to obtain her commercial pilot’s license and Learjet certification.

Her family and instructors have pushed back against online criticism questioning whether someone so young was qualified to serve as a co-pilot on a high-performance business jet.

Kirk told PEOPLE that her opportunity came from her flying skills and the way she worked with others — not simply her age.

Her final radio calls revealed the seriousness of the emergency

On November 1, 2026, Nathalia was serving as co-pilot aboard a Learjet 60 traveling from Texas toward the Bahamas.

The aircraft crashed in a residential neighborhood in Palm Beach County, Florida, killing all nine people aboard, including Nathalia, senior pilot Jeff Gregory, 55, and seven passengers.

According to reporting by PEOPLE and the Associated Press, the aircraft encountered icing and severe turbulence amid stormy weather before the situation rapidly deteriorated.

Audio recordings reviewed by PEOPLE captured Nathalia communicating with air traffic control as the aircraft began an increasingly rapid descent.

She reported the emergency, describing the aircraft’s descent at thousands of feet per minute. In one transmission, she warned that the plane was descending at 20,000 feet per minute and said they were going to crash.

Her final recorded words included the phrase, “we’re out of 10,” referring to the aircraft descending below 10,000 feet.

Kirk told PEOPLE that he did not want to speculate about what caused the disaster, emphasizing that determining the cause was the responsibility of the National Transportation Safety Board.

He nevertheless believed Nathalia’s deliberate radio transmissions could provide investigators with important information as they reconstruct the final moments of the flight.

He also praised the composure she demonstrated during an emergency of unimaginable intensity.

Her instructor says the loss left him heartbroken

For Kirk, the tragedy is deeply personal.

He told PEOPLE that Nathalia was respected and adored by the people who knew her, describing her as a sweet and wonderful young woman.

“Because I was close to her, it ripped my heart out and left me with a deep feeling of emptiness,” he said.

Her father, Allan, has also spoken publicly about his daughter’s final moments. A pilot himself, he first took Nathalia flying when she was 12 and helped introduce her to the world of aviation.

At a news conference on November 6, he said he had repeatedly listened to her final radio transmissions, struggling with the loss while also feeling proud of how she responded during the emergency.

“She showed me what it is to be a hero,” he said.

He remembered how happy she had been after becoming a professional pilot, saying that flying was the moment when she seemed most fulfilled.

For her family, friends and former instructors, Nathalia’s death represents the loss of a young woman whose future had been closely tied to the skies.

The investigation remains ongoing

The National Transportation Safety Board is continuing to investigate the Learjet 60 crash.

Investigators have examined aircraft wreckage and the circumstances surrounding the rapid descent. At the time of the Associated Press report on November 6, the cockpit voice recorder had not yet been recovered.

Officials have not established an official cause of the crash, and the investigation will be needed to determine what happened.

As those questions remain unanswered, Kirk’s tribute has brought attention back to Nathalia herself — not only as the young co-pilot aboard a doomed aircraft, but as a dedicated aviator remembered by the people who taught and loved her.

After four decades of training pilots, Kirk says he will remember her as someone truly special.

A young woman who, in his words, was simply born to fly.