Learjet · Business jet
Learjet 55
Is the Learjet 55 safe? It ranks Shared rankWithin 1 point of other aircraft types: the difference is not meaningful.More in the glossary of 18 private and business aircraft families we rate, with 3 fatal accidents counted in about 220,000 flights since 2008.
Likely range 39 to 61
How the score is built
- Fatal accidents
- 3 in 0.21 million flights
14 fatal accidents per million flights. Counted: all civil flights (private, charter, corporate, cargo, training and other), accidents and unexplained losses; not counted: military, test and illegal flights, sabotage, hijackings, shoot-downs and deliberate crew acts.
- Full-loss equivalents
- 2.5
Each counted accident adds the share of people on board who died (1 = no survivors). This is what the score is based on.
- Flights flown
- 0.21 million
Estimated flights of all kinds. Flights of all kinds (private, charter, corporate, cargo, training and other civil use) 2008 to 3 November 2026: OpenSky 2022 flights of the type under any call sign (US military aircraft left out), re-weighted to World Bank departures country by country, carried to other years by the type's flights counted each year by FAA traffic flow management (TFMSC). Flights before 2008 are not used, like the accidents. About 94 flights per aircraft per year (fleet with a median service life of about 37 years). Uncertainty roughly ±30%.
- Technology generation
- Classic business jet (type first flew before 1990)
Small fleets are pulled toward the record of the other types of their generation: 2.2 full-loss equivalents per million flights over 13.6 million flights. Weight of this family's own record: 38%.
- Likely range
- 39 to 61
The score is 90% likely to lie in this range, given how few accidents a type has and the error in the estimate of its flights.
- Last fatal accident
- 24 September 2025
Jet Industries, S.A., Caracas-Simón Bolívar Int'l Airport (CCS), Venezuela: 2 of 4 people on board died.
- Hull losses
- 18
Civil aircraft destroyed or written off from all causes, including non-fatal accidents, cargo flights and attacks; airframes flown by air forces on military operations are left out. ASN gives no fate for some damaged aircraft, so this can be a little low (context only, not in the score).
Compared with everyday risks
One flight on the Learjet 55 carries about the same risk of death as the activities near it below.
- An hour's walk1 in 14 million
- Driving 100 miles (160 km)1 in 5.9 million
- An ordinary day: accidents and violence1 in 1 million
- A day of skiing1 in 830,000
- A scuba dive1 in 500,000
- Cycling 100 miles (160 km)1 in 430,000
- Running a marathon1 in 290,000
- A skydive1 in 250,000
- One flight on the Learjet 55This aircraft1 in 170,000
- A general anaesthetic1 in 100,000
- Riding a motorbike 100 miles (160 km)1 in 83,000
Accident history
3 fatal accidents since 2008 count toward the score, with 14 people on board killed.
| Date | Flight | Killed | What happened |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jet Industries, S.A.Learjet 55 · Caracas-Simón Bolívar Int'l Airport (CCS), Venezuela | 2 killed / 4 on board | Taking off from an intersection at Caracas, the Learjet 55 lost its right main tyres, kept rolling under braking, overran the runway and hit sports facilities about 120 m beyond, then burned. Both pilots died and two passengers were hurt. No cause has been published.Type: Runway excursionASN record | |
| Med Jets SA de CV dba Jet RescueLearjet 55 · near North Philadelphia Airport (PNE/KPNE), Philadelphia, PA, United States of America | 6 killed / 6 on board | About a minute after a night takeoff from Northeast Philadelphia in low cloud, the air ambulance Learjet 55 descended steeply into a city neighbourhood and exploded; all six on board and one person on the ground died. No distress call was made and no cause has been published.Type: Unknown causeASN record | |
| Inversiones LJ145Learjet 55C · 7 km SSE of Charallave-Óscar Machado Zuloaga Airport, Venezuela | 6 killed / 6 on board | After declaring an emergency over a thrust reverser problem, the Learjet 55C appeared to abandon a landing at Charallave; on the next approach it kept turning past the runway line and hit a forested hillside. All six died. The investigation has not published a cause.Type: Unknown causeASN record |
Listed but not counted
These events happened before 2008 (the score covers 2008 onward, the period its flight count covers), on military, test or illegal flights, or were caused by a crime or a deliberate act, which says little about the aircraft design.
| Date | Flight | Killed | Why not counted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Universal Jet AviationLearjet 55 · 4,5 km SW of Boca Raton, FL, United States of America | 3 killed / 3 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. Shortly after leaving Boca Raton on a positioning flight, the Learjet collided at about 2,400 ft with an Extra 300 aerobatic aircraft and both fell onto homes. The NTSB found neither pilot kept an adequate lookout.Type: Mid-air collisionASN record | |
| Aero FranceLearjet 55 · near Jakiri, Cameroon | 11 killed / 11 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. The Learjet 55, flying French official Michel Baroin home from Brazzaville, came down from a cruise height of about 11,900 m into mountains near Jakiri, Cameroon. All 11 on board died. No cause is given in the record.Type: Unknown causeASN record | |
| Gates LearjetLearjet 55 · Waterkloof, South Africa | 2 killed / 2 on board | Before 2008, outside the period the score covers. During a low-level aerobatic display at Waterkloof air base, the Learjet 55 crashed while flying a barrel roll at about 155 kt and 690 ft. Both people on board died.Type: Loss of control in flightASN record |
The Learjet 55 is the jet the Learjet 60 grew from, and its record is weaker than its offspring's. From 2008 to 3 November 2026 we count three fatal crashes in about 220,000 flights, two of them in 2025. Among the business aircraft we rank it sits near the bottom: it shares its rank with the older Learjet 35, just behind the King Air 200, and only the TBM and the King Air 90 rank lower. Every 55 flying today is more than 35 years old, so the operator who keeps it in the air matters more than the type itself.
Where the Learjet 55 fits in the Learjet family
When it entered service in 1981, the 55 gave Learjet buyers a much larger cabin than the earlier Learjets. It kept the Learjet hallmarks, a T-tail and two rear engines, here Garrett TFE731-3 turbofans, and used the "Longhorn" wing with winglets. The 55B and 55C followed; the 55C added small fins under the tail. Learjet built 147 up to about 1990, and about 50 were seen flying in 2022.
In 1990 Learjet flew a stretched development with new Pratt & Whitney Canada engines. That became the Learjet 60, which keeps the 55's basic wing and layout and has a better record per flight.
The fatal record by flight purpose
Our data lists six fatal events. The score counts only accidents from 1 January 2008 on, so three count under our business aircraft rules:
- Passenger or charter flights (2). On 24 September 2025 a Jet Industries, S.A. Learjet 55 lost its right main tyres on take-off at Caracas, Venezuela, overran and burned; 2 of 4 died. On 22 June 2022 an Inversiones LJ145 Learjet 55C crashed into a hillside 7 km from Charallave, Venezuela, after the crew declared an emergency over a thrust reverser problem; 6 of 6 died. Neither has a published cause.
- Other flights: air ambulance (1). On 31 January 2025 an air ambulance flown by Med Jets SA de CV dba Jet Rescue came down in a Philadelphia neighbourhood a minute after a night take-off; 6 of 6 on board died, and one person on the ground. The NTSB investigation was still open at our cut-off.
Three older crashes are listed as history but do not count, because they came before 2008. On 5 February 1987 an Aero France Learjet 55 carrying French official Michel Baroin crashed into mountains near Jakiri, Cameroon, from cruise height; 11 of 11 died. On 23 June 2000 a Universal Jet Aviation Learjet 55 on a positioning flight collided with an aerobatic aircraft near Boca Raton, Florida; 3 of 3 died. The NTSB found that neither pilot kept an adequate lookout. The Gates Learjet display crash at Waterkloof, South Africa, on 13 November 1981 (2 dead) was a demonstration flight, which we would leave out in any case.
Each Learjet 55 flies only about 94 flights a year, so one crash weighs heavily on the rate. With three counted crashes our confidence is low and the likely range of the score is wide, and with so few flights the record of business jets that first flew before 1990 has a large effect on the score.
Crew and operator checks
The Learjet 55 needs two pilots. Before you book:
- Ask which company holds the operator certificate for your flight. For a US charter that is a Part 135 certificate, which you can check with the FAA.
- Ask for a recent ARGUS, Wyvern or IS-BAO audit.
- Ask about maintenance on an aircraft this old: who maintains it, and when it last had its major inspection.
- Confirm both pilots are type-rated on the Learjet 55.
How to tell if you are on one
Flight trackers show LJ55 for every version. A Learjet 60 shows LJ60, and the newer Learjet 45 family LJ40, LJ45, LJ70 or LJ75.
Questions people ask
Is the Learjet 55 safe to fly on?
Its record is one of the weaker ones among the business jets we rank: three counted fatal crashes in about 220,000 flights from 2008 to 3 November 2026. Every Learjet 55 is now more than 35 years old, so maintenance and the operator matter more than the design. Check the operator and its audit before you fly.
What happened in the Learjet 55 crash in Philadelphia?
On 31 January 2025 an air ambulance Learjet 55 descended steeply into a Philadelphia neighbourhood about a minute after a night take-off in low cloud. All six on board and one person on the ground died. No distress call was made, and the NTSB had not published a cause up to 3 November 2026.
How old are Learjet 55s?
The type entered service in 1981 and the last ones were built around 1990, so the youngest aircraft are over 35 years old. About 50 of the 147 built were seen flying in 2022.
Is the Learjet 60 the same as the Learjet 55?
No, but it is closely related. The Learjet 60 is a stretched development of the 55, with a longer cabin and Pratt & Whitney Canada PW305A engines in place of the 55's Garrett TFE731s. It first flew in 1990 and has a better record than the 55.
Does a Learjet 55 need two pilots?
Yes. The Learjet 55 is certified for a crew of two. A charter offered with one pilot is a reason to book elsewhere.
Sources
- 1.ASN record: Med Jets (Jet Rescue) Learjet 55, Philadelphia, 31 January 2025 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 2.ASN record: Jet Industries Learjet 55, Caracas, Venezuela, 24 September 2025 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 3.ASN record: Inversiones LJ145 Learjet 55C, near Charallave, Venezuela, 22 June 2022 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 4.ASN record: Universal Jet Aviation Learjet 55, near Boca Raton, Florida, 23 June 2000 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 5.ASN record: Aero France Learjet 55, near Jakiri, Cameroon, 5 February 1987 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 6.ASN record: Gates Learjet Learjet 55 display, Waterkloof, South Africa, 13 November 1981 (opens in a new tab) · Aviation Safety Network
- 7.SafetyScorer exposure model: OpenSky Network flights 2022 (all operators), World Bank departures, FAA TFMSC (opens in a new tab)Flights of all kinds (private, charter, corporate, cargo, training and other civil use) 2008 to 3 November 2026: OpenSky 2022 flights of the type under any call sign (US military aircraft left out), re-weighted to World Bank departures country by country, carried to other years by the type's flights counted each year by FAA traffic flow management (TFMSC). Flights before 2008 are not used, like the accidents. About 94 flights per aircraft per year (fleet with a median service life of about 37 years). Uncertainty roughly ±30%.