14 aircraft accidents in Brazil since 2000

The ATR-72-212A operated by Voepass Linhas Aereas took off from Cascavel, Brazil, for a passenger flight to Sao Paulo, Brazil. 58 passengers and 4 crewmembers were onboard. As the aircraft began its initial approach at approximately FL170 (around 17,000 feet), it suddenly spun out of control and crashed into a residential area in Vila Santa Fé, Brazil. The plane hit the ground at high speed and burst into flames, resulting in the tragic loss of all 62 occupants. No residential houses were struck, and there were no injuries reported on the ground.

The Let L-410 operated by NOAR Linhas Aéreas took off from Recife, Brazil, for a passenger flight to Natal, Brazil. 14 passengers and 2 crewmembers were onboard. The plane crashed shortly after takeoff, killing all 16 people onboard. The twin-turboprop aircraft developed technical problems immediately after takeoff. The plane was in initial climb, less than 1 minute into the flight, when the crew declared an emergency and indicated they would attempt to return to the runway. Two minutes later, the crew indicated they could not reach runway 36 and that they would attempt an emergency landing on the beach of Boa Viagem. The Czech-made L-410 was seen steeply descending and crashed 20 seconds later and burst into flames. The plane has been pulverised. The airplane crashed in a vacant field near the beach, about 1 NM from the runway end.

The Embraer ERJ-145 operated by Passaredo Transportes Aereos LTDA, performing flight from Sao Paulo Guarulhos, Brazil to Vitoria da Conquista, Brazil with 24 passengers and 3 crew, crashed on landing at Vitória da Conquista Airport. Two passengers received minor injuries, the other occupants remained uninjured. The airplane received substantial damage. The plane was performing a visual approach to runway 15. But the plane touched down short of runway, the tail hitting the ground first. This missed landing caused the entire landing gear to be ripped off the aircraft that went out of control and skidded on its belly onto the runway and veered off the runway before coming to a stop. Both engines were hit hard and received serious damage. The right hand engine burst into flames which were doused by airport fire services. The aircraft received also heavy damage to its underbelly and wings and horizontal stabilizer.

The Embraer EMB-110P1 operated by Manaus Aerotáxi departed the Brazilian Amazon city of Coari on a domestic flight to the inland Brazilian Amazon basin's largest city, Manaus. 26 passengers and 2 crewmembers were onboard. Moments before reaching Manaus, the captain decided to return to Coari due to weather conditions prevailing en-route. The plane crashed shortly afterward, killing 24 people onboard. The pilot contacted Manaus ATC about one hour after takeoff. He stated his intentions of returning to Coari due to heavy rainfall en route. Contact with the flight was lost shortly afterward. It is suspected the plane suffered an engine failure and it was forced to make an emergency landing. Authorities suspect the plane tried to make an emergency landing at the Panamacapuru airport but went down instead in the River Manacapuru (between Santo Antonio and the island of Montecristo, some 80 kilometers (50 miles) from Manaus). Rescue personnel found four passengers alive. 22 people including both crewmembers were killed.

TAM Flight 3054 was a regular flight from Porto Alegre, Brazil, to São Paulo-Congonhas, Brazil. The plane was carrying 181 passengers and 6 crewmembers when it crashed on landing, killing all people onboard and 11 people on ground. The Airbus A320, operated by TAM SA, the country's biggest airline, skid off the end of the rain-soaked runway on landing, cleared the airport fence at the end of the runway and the busy highway but slammed into a gas station and a TAM building, causing an inferno. The video of the landing shows the plane speeding up after touching down very close to the designated limit for landings. The airline also said one of the Airbus 320's two thrust reversers was deactivated. Flying with only one thrust reverser is allowed and safe, but reduces braking power.

GOL Flight 1907 departed the principal Amazon city of Manaus (Brazil) at 15:35 on a scheduled flight to the capital Brasilia and Rio de Janeiro. It was expected to arrive at Brasilia at 18:12. At 16:48, while at a cruise altitude of FL370 (37,000 ft – 11,300 m), radar contact was lost. The Boeing 737-800 operated by Brazilian low-cost carrier Gol probably plunged into the ground nose first after it clipped a smaller executive jet. The wreckage was found near a cattle ranch, in remote Amazon jungle, 1090 miles (1750 km) northwest of Sao Paulo in the heavily forested Brazilian state of Para. All 149 passengers and 6 crew members were killed. Five air force planes searched for several hours without success over the area immediately after the flight went missing in Para state airspace. The day after, a total of eight planes and five helicopters took part in the search and rescue efforts along with emergency services and medical teams, and finally found the wreckage. The small executive jet, an Embraer 135 Legacy 600, declared an emergency and safely landed in Cachimbo without injuries to the 7 occupants. Its pilot reported seeing, "out of nowhere, a large shadow" passing his plane, clipping his wing, and forcing an emergency landing. The small executive jet was flying at the wrong altitude when it crossed paths with the Boeing 737. The planes were both flying at 37,000 feet. But the small jet, flying north toward Manaus, should have been at even-numbered altitudes, like 36 [thousand] or 38,000 feet. Authorities also believe the two pilots of the small executive jet may have shut off the plane's transponder, an illegal move that would have rendered its anti-collision system useless. Indeed, the transponder is a device that transmits the plane’s location to other planes and to the Air Traffic Controller. It also transmits other plane’s location to the aircraft TCAS (Traffic Collision Avoidance System). If the transponder is switched off, the TCAS is unable to detect threatening planes and to provide appropriate anti-collision orders to the crew. But the pilots have denied they turned off the transponder, and said they believed it was working just before the collision. The device could have experienced an internal failure.

A small LET-410 twin-engine plane belonging to the local Team Airline crashed in the mountains of Rio de Janeiro state (Brazil), killing all 17 passengers and 2 crew members aboard. The plane left Macae, the base for offshore oil operations in Rio de Janeiro state, for a 40-minute flight to Rio de Janeiro city about 110 miles to the southwest. It had gone down 20 minutes after take-off in a mountainous region between Saquarema and Rio Bonito. There were no reports of severe weather where the Czech-made plane disappeared. The aircraft, which had a capacity to carry 19 passengers and two crew members, was at least five years old and had recently gone through a two-month routine maintenance. It also had been inspected by the Aviation Authority. Local media said rural workers in the mountainous region between Macae and Rio de Janeiro heard an explosion after the plane flew very low overhead.

The aircraft, on a passenger domestic flight from Tefé to Manaus (Brazil) crashed into the Amazon about 9 miles from the airport in Manaus while on final approach.

Gol flight 1756 departed São Paulo for a passenger flight to Porto Alegre via Navegantes. After landing at Navegantes' runway 25, the Boeing 737 ran off the runway and crashed through a brick wall before coming to rest. All 149 people aboard escaped major injuries.

The aircraft, on a passenger flight from Belém and Manaus, crash-landed short of runway 06 at Rio Branco in poor weather conditions. The Boeing skidded approximately 2,000 feet across the runway and came to a stop in the grass adjacent to the runway surface, suffering substantial damage. No serious injuries were reported among the 87 passengers and six crewmembers aboard.

The aircraft was on a cargo (mail) flight from São Paulo to Londrina. About 20 minutes after takeoff, the ATR crashed into a field. Both crew members were killed.

The aircraft, on a passenger flight from Cruzeiro do Sul to Rio Branco, crashed approximately a mile short of the runway at Rio Branco while on approach in poor weather conditions. A windshear is probably the root cause of the accident. Among de 31 people aboard, 23 were killed.

The aircraft, on a passenger flight from São Paulo to Campo Grande, crashed in a farm field near the town of Aracatuba, 325 miles northwest of São Paulo. The aircraft reportedly suffered some sort of fuel leak, and was forced to land when the fuel onboard the aircraft became exhausted. None of the 28 passengers and crew aboard were seriously injured, however, the aircraft was written off.

The Boeing 737 was on a passenger flight and arrived at Salgado Filho Int'l Airport, Brazil. A thunderstorm was passing over the airport. The aircraft skidded off rain-soaked runway 29 while landing. 20 of the 111 passengers and crew were injured, most during the evacuation via the escape slides.