Andre Penner/Associated Press
Tragic Aviation Incident Claims Lives in Brazil
- A passenger aircraft carrying 62 individuals crashed in São Paulo, Brazil, on Friday.
- The president of Brazil has indicated that it seems all on board have perished.
- The cause of the tragic incident remains under investigation.
A commercial aircraft operated by Voepass, which was transporting 62 individuals—58 passengers and four crew members—was on its way from Cascavel to Guarulhos International Airport when it tragically went down near Vinhedo, a locality within São Paulo state. This information was confirmed by Voepass through an announcement on its official website.
Dario Lopez-Mills/Associated Press
While initial reports emerged, no further information has been made available regarding potential causes leading to this startling aviation accident.
According to GloboNews, a Brazilian television network, there were no survivors following this unfortunate event. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva expressed condolences at an engagement in southern Brazil, suggesting that every individual aboard likely lost their life.
Unverified footage disseminated by GloboNews depicted the plane spiraling uncontrollably before hitting the ground. Additional clips showcased reporters on-site amidst flames and responders securing the area where wreckage landed in a residential backyard.
Reports revealed that although the aircraft crashed perilously close to occupied homes, fortunately no injuries occurred among local residents. One eyewitness shared with The Associated Press, “It felt like it was going to descend into our yard; it was terrifying; thankfully there were no injuries nearby.” However, he noted sorrowfully that those aboard are indeed victims of this tragedy.
São Paulo’s governor Tarcísio Gomes de Freitas stated via social media platform X that emergency teams—including firefighters and medical personnel—were deployed for recovery efforts at the scene. He extended heartfelt condolences toward all impacted by this heartbreaking situation through his post.
In response to this incident involving one of their ATR 72 model planes manufactured since collaboration between France and Italy began decades ago—the ATR company informed AP they have assigned experts to assist both with ongoing investigations and support for affected customers. Notably, since operations began using these models in the 1990s over 470 fatalities have been reported globally linked to them as per sources from Aviation Safety Network.
This incident marks one of Brazil’s gravest aviation catastrophes since 2007 when nearly two hundred lives were lost during an accident involving TAM Airlines flights according to insights from Estadão.
