A tragic plane crash near São Paulo, Brazil, has claimed the lives of all 61 people aboard, marking one of the deadliest aviation disasters in recent memory. The incident occurred on Friday afternoon when a Voepass Linhas Aéreas flight, en route from Cascavel in the state of Paraná to Guarulhos in São Paulo, crashed in the city of Vinhedo. The airline confirmed the grim news, stating that all 57 passengers and four crew members aboard flight 2283 perished in the crash.
Dramatic footage of the incident, circulating widely on social media, shows the ATR 72-500 aircraft spiraling out of control before plummeting to the ground, where it burst into flames. The charred wreckage of the plane was seen strewn across a residential area, with thick plumes of smoke rising into the sky. Remarkably, no casualties were reported on the ground, as the plane narrowly missed several homes in the gated community.
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva interrupted a scheduled speech at a naval event to announce the crash, asking the audience to observe a minute of silence in honor of the victims. Later that evening, Lula declared three days of national mourning, as the country grapples with the loss.
The flight had been cruising at an altitude of 17,000 feet before it began a rapid descent, dropping nearly 17,000 feet in just one minute, according to data from Flightradar24. The cause of the crash remains unclear, and no distress call was reported from the crew prior to the incident. The Brazilian Air Force's aviation accidents agency, CENIPA, has launched an investigation to determine the factors that led to the disaster.
Brigadier Marcelo Moreno, head of CENIPA, stated in a press conference that there was no indication of an emergency situation aboard the aircraft before it went down. "Preliminarily, we have this information that there was no communication about the aircraft being in any type of emergency," Moreno said. The aircraft's black box has been recovered, and investigators are now analyzing the data to gain insights into the final moments of the flight.
The ATR 72-500, a twin-engine turboprop aircraft, was manufactured in 2010 and had been in service with Voepass Linhas Aéreas since September 2022. The plane is designed to operate in severe icing conditions, leading some experts to speculate that weather may have played a role in the crash. However, Lt. Col. Carlos Henrique Baldi, also of CENIPA, cautioned against jumping to conclusions. "It is still too early to confirm whether ice caused the accident," he said, emphasizing that a thorough investigation is required.
Residents of Vinhedo, who witnessed the horrifying crash, described the moment as one of sheer terror. Ana Lucia de Lima, who lives near the crash site, recounted how she was having lunch when she saw the plane descending rapidly. "I thought it was going to fall in our yard," she said. "It was scary, but thank God there were no victims among the locals. The 61 people inside the plane were the real victims, though."
Emergency response teams quickly arrived at the scene, battling flames and working to recover the bodies of those on board. The wreckage, scattered over a wide area, presented a challenging task for the responders. To assist in identifying the victims, authorities have asked family members to provide medical records, X-rays, and dental records.
The crash has prompted a swift response from Brazilian authorities, with the Federal Police launching their own investigation into the incident. Specialists in plane crashes and disaster victim identification have been dispatched to the site, as the grim process of identifying the victims begins.
ATR, the manufacturer of the downed aircraft, released a statement expressing condolences and pledging full support for the investigation. "Our first thoughts are with all the individuals affected by this event," the company said. "The ATR specialists are fully engaged to support both the investigation and the customer."
In a poignant twist of fate, it was revealed that several passengers missed the ill-fated flight due to a gate mix-up. One of these passengers, who spoke to Brazilian news outlet Globo, expressed deep relief mixed with survivor's guilt. "My legs are shaking; only God knows how I'm feeling," he said after learning of the crash. "Thank God, we didn't get on that plane."
