A passenger jet en route to São Paulo’s international airport tragically spiraled out of the sky, crashing in São Paulo state, Brazil. The Brazilian airline VoePass confirmed that all 61 people on board perished in the crash, which occurred on Friday.
The aircraft, carrying 57 passengers and four crew members, crashed into a residential area in the city of Vinhedo after departing from Cascavel in Paraná state, according to The Associated Press. The fiery wreckage of the plane was captured in aerial footage by GloboNews, showing smoke billowing from the obliterated fuselage. Additional footage depicted the plane descending vertically, spiraling as it fell.
In a statement, VoePass expressed deep regret, confirming, “All 61 people on board flight 2283 died at the scene.”
Emergency response teams, including firefighters, military police, and the civil defense authority, were swiftly dispatched to the crash site.
Local resident Ana Lucia, who witnessed the crash, recounted the terrifying moment: “I thought it was going to fall in our yard. It was scary, but thankfully, there were no victims among the locals. Unfortunately, it seems that the 62 people inside the plane were the real victims.”
The Capela neighborhood, where the plane went down, is located far from the city center of Vinhedo, which has a population of 77,000.
During an event in southern Brazil, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva shared the tragic news, asking the crowd to observe a moment of silence in honor of the victims.
At São Paulo’s Guarulhos airport, VoePass staff began notifying and supporting the families of the victims in a private room. The exact number of victims was not specified.
Aviation expert and former pilot Arthur Rosenberg analyzed the incident, suggesting that the video footage indicates the plane may have stalled midair. “A stall occurs when the aircraft isn’t moving fast enough through the air to maintain lift,” Rosenberg explained on Fox News Channel’s “The Story.” He added that the sound in the video suggested possible engine trouble.
Radar data reportedly shows a “rapid descent,” potentially caused by engine failure or another malfunction. Rosenberg noted that the aircraft appeared to drop 17,000 feet in just two minutes.
The plane involved was an ATR 72-500 twin-engine turboprop, a model commonly used for shorter flights, according to FlightRadar24. Although VoePass did not immediately confirm the aircraft type, the manufacturer, French-Italian ATR, stated that their specialists are “fully engaged to support both the investigation and the customer.”
Officials have recovered the plane’s black box, or flight data recorder, which will be crucial in determining the cause of the crash.
