Commercial aviation is incredibly safe, so it’s shocking when we see any sort of fatal accident. However, this has to be one of the most disturbing accidents we’ve ever seen.
In this post:
Turboprop spirals out of control in Brazil
A turboprop had a fatal crash today (Friday, August 9, 2024) while operating a domestic flight in Brazil, killing all 62 people onboard (four crew members and 58 passengers). Specifically, this involves an ATR-72 belonging to Brazilian airline Voepass, operating flight 2Z 2283, scheduled to fly the 456-mile route from Cascavel (CAC) to Sao Paulo (GRU). The aircraft operating the flight was a 14-year-old aircraft with the registration code PS-VPB.
Shortly after 1:20PM local time today, the plane was at its cruising altitude of 17,000 feet and was around 50 miles from Sao Paulo, when the crew suddenly lost control, and the aircraft entered a corkscrew-style spiral. The last data from the transponder shows that the aircraft had a vertical speed between -8,000 and -24,000 feet per minute.
There’s video footage of this incident from all kinds of angles, and it’s absolutely awful to watch. I can’t even imagine how terrible the last seconds were for those onboard. The below is just about the least disturbing version I’ve seen, though there are all kinds of videos out there, including of the crash site, which I won’t be sharing here.
It’s of course too early to know what went wrong here, though, as we’ll have to wait for investigators to release an initial report. However, today there were reports of severe icing in the area where the aircraft crashed, at an altitude between 12,000 and 21,000 feet, which is the range in which the aircraft was flying.
What an absolutely awful accident
First and foremost, my thoughts are with the families of those onboard, and may those onboard rest in peace. Any sort of aircraft accident is terrible, but this one is especially hard to process.
For one, the clear footage of this accident from so many angles is just terrible to watch, as it’s not often you see a plane so clearly fall out of the sky in this way.
Beyond that, a vast majority of the time, accidents happen either during takeoff or landing. To see a plane just fall out of the sky at cruising altitude is exceedingly rare. I’m very curious to see what a report reveals about the cause of this incident, because stuff like this just shouldn’t happen.
Bottom line
A Voepass ATR-72 had a tragic accident today in Brazil, killing all 62 people onboard. The aircraft was cruising at 17,000 feet when it suddenly entered a sharp dive, before crashing into the ground. There were reports of severe icing in the area, though we don’t know much beyond that.
My thoughts are with the families of the deceased. Simply terrible…
The ATR is an unsafe aircraft IMO. This is similar to the American Eagle crash in Indiana back in the 1990's . Icing cased the plane to spin out and lose control. . .and this looks and early reports are claiming that icing was reported in the area. This aircraft needs to be grounded and NEVER fly again if after 30 years they haven't fixed the issue.
My prayers go out to the families.
Most accident involving with this airplane is a human or pilot error as i read in an article. So pilot needs more training in flying this atr-72 plane
I know nothing about how planes actually work so perhaps a silly question, but what makes a plane fall like that as opposed to gliding?
The plane likely stalled, meaning the speed was so low, it couldn't maintain its aerodynamic flight anymore to even glide. It's way to early to know what happened, but one probable theory is that the ice may have causrd the engines to shut down, and the ice also accumulated on the wings and airframe, changing the aerodynamics of the plane and preventing it from gliding. That could cause the plane to fall like that. But...
The plane likely stalled, meaning the speed was so low, it couldn't maintain its aerodynamic flight anymore to even glide. It's way to early to know what happened, but one probable theory is that the ice may have causrd the engines to shut down, and the ice also accumulated on the wings and airframe, changing the aerodynamics of the plane and preventing it from gliding. That could cause the plane to fall like that. But like I said, it's very early, so this is merely a possible explanation based on the info we know now. Regardless, my thoughts are with the families and may they rest in peace.
The audio suggests the engines were at power.
Never was I so scared as in a battered down ATR flying from SGN to VCS. The flight started uneventfully, but soon we got in the middle of a tremendous storm. As soon as I saw the supercooled water droplets instantly fogging the whole of my window I realized we were in trouble. Talk about knowing a bit too much (in this case about ATRs and icing). The F/A crying, and the passengers panicking to...
Never was I so scared as in a battered down ATR flying from SGN to VCS. The flight started uneventfully, but soon we got in the middle of a tremendous storm. As soon as I saw the supercooled water droplets instantly fogging the whole of my window I realized we were in trouble. Talk about knowing a bit too much (in this case about ATRs and icing). The F/A crying, and the passengers panicking to the point of putting their life jackets on didn't help much.
I hate ATRs with a vengeance, but I fly to places where they are the lifeline and only option.
Rest in peace.
Awful. RIP to all the passengers and thinking of their families. Terrifying and so sad.
Company says deicing system was working properly. Engine failure maybe.
How would they know that already about the anti-ice systems? Genuine question. Would that be obvious already on the ground in the wreckage? Or are they maybe just going off the maintenance/pilot logs for the plane and seeing no previous reports of a bad system?
If you are not an employee of the NTSB or Brazilian equivalent, just stop the speculative comments.
At this time, we should be thinking of the souls that were lost, and their families and friends that are suffering...let's think of them, or pray for them if that's aligns with your faith.
Who the hell are YOU, internet nobody, to tell people what to comment on? Get over yourself.
Speculation on possibilities is 99% of the commentary on this, even by professionals at this point, as that's all there can be.
And, it serves what purpose?
@ImmortalSynn
Your screen name says everything about you, backed up by your comments. Sad life you have, but I wish you the best.
It goes without saying, no one from NTSB will comment on this accident. NTSB may not even be involved in the investigation. CENIPA will likely make comments and will certainly release an accident report in due course. Meanwhile, Lucky has posted a video on a website for aviation enthusiasts of a large aircraft in a flat spin with engine running, which is very unusual. It’s perfectly appropriate for him to do that, and for readers to comment.
It is common for the NTSB to participate in non-US accident investigations. I'll guess LAXLonghorn's frustration is that speculative comments are to no effect. "I think this and I think that." Does the reader feel better that they've said their piece? Fine. I know how to put an aircraft into a flat spin . . . and have intentionally done so . . . and recovered , , , and I have my own speculations. But, I feel it's appropriate to wait for the report.
If icing is an issue with this crash, high time given the ATRs history, they were grounded!
Flat spin. Icing conditions at 17k? The ATR has a bad reputation in icing conditions. It’s a booted aircraft with a big wing surface.
Terrible. RIP to all those on board and thoughts to their families.
I'll wait for the final report, but I'll just say the ATR has had a bad history in the past with icing conditions.
The only time I was on one of these was in Cambodia and I was praying the whole flight.
I can't even imagine the horror those poor souls endured. WOW. Bless them and the families they left behind.
Something specifically horrific about how the area goes silent after the plane crashes
American Eagle 4184 comes to mind , as well.
Any similarities to the American Eagle ATR72 icing crash at Roselawn, Indiana in the 1990's?
Or the Egyptair JFK-CAI suicide crash?
The suicide aspect was never officially accepted.
GE791 comes to mind.
Brazilian media shared a crazy story on how 10 passengers missed this flight because they apparently went to the wrong gate and when they realized the mistake they ran to the correct gate to see the door closed. The agent didn’t budge to them asking him to open the door and let them in. Sometimes things happen in life for a reason.
"Sometimes things happen in life for a reason."
What an insane spin on this tragedy. People should not have died at all on this plane, regardless of whether or not they made the flight or not.
What exactly are you saying? 62 souls perished because the FA wouldn’t open the cabin door? I’ve seen poor takes but this is something else.
What do you believe is the consequence for speaking ill of a fatal plane crash on the internet then?
I think he is (trying) to say those 10 people survived because they were late/the agent wouldn't let them on the plane. Not that the plane crashed because they weren't allowed to board.
At least I hope so, otherwise it's a gross comment.
@Julia: that’s exactly what I tried to say. Those 10 people would be in that plane but for some weird reason they went to the wrong gate and ended up not making the flight. They got very mad they were not allowed into the plane when they got to the right gate. All I am saying is that sometimes in life you have to just accept the situation. It happens sometimes for a reason that is beyond us. Not sure why some people thought my comment was saying something different.
It's like when people talk about it being a "miracle" that one person is found alive in the wreckage/rubble/debris. Are we to assume that god/the universe was somehow annoyed with everyone who died and decided not to spare them?
The universe is absolutely indifferent to us. If more people accepted that basic truth, we wouldn't be bombarded with so much emotional drivel.
Was I saved because I decided to not go to Brazil and had a chance of being on this flight?
This nonsense about people being "saved" is a digusting take. 62 people were killed, not saved. Stop making tragedies about yourselves instead of the victims.
ATR-72 is known to have serious icing issues. If there was icing in the area, the ATR-72 shouldn't have been there.
The majority of the comments from the pilots here in Brazil are that there was to much ice during the landing and it frozen the airplane wing or even the turbines. The pilot entered an area that was tagged as ICE SEV and ATR doesn’t have a good record facing ice conditions. All the people here are shocked with this event since the last accident with a commercial flight was 17 years ago…
ATR-72 and severe icing conditions remind me of the American Eagle 4184 crash. The ATR's known to perform badly when subject to ice. Of course I'm speculating though. It's an incredibly tragic death to experience and my hearts go out.
That’s similar trajectory to Air France 447 plus the spinning . They need to remove all those loud alarms in the cockpit when something goes wrong it just adds more stress and confusion in the cockpit.
"That’s similar trajectory to Air France 447"
How? Just going off visual, even ignoring the spinning, there's not any apparent similarity to the two at all.
Look at the Simmons ATR crash in Illinois 1994
By the time your aircraft is in a flat spin you have more to worry about than the alarms.
Looks like a flat spin from that angle.
Yes, it definitely looks like a flat spin to me, which means they stalled somehow.
Poor devils.
just a question: why would this accident be particular? I get the fact it is shown on video, but it sadly resembles all others, no?
I see what you mean, Felix. Loss of life in an accident is always tragic. But when I compare this accident to those of controlled flight into terrain (CFIT), for example, it's the difference in time between awareness of an emergency and the end that makes it hard to watch the video. In CFIT the event is over in a moment for those in the cabin. In this case, everyone on board was likely filled...
I see what you mean, Felix. Loss of life in an accident is always tragic. But when I compare this accident to those of controlled flight into terrain (CFIT), for example, it's the difference in time between awareness of an emergency and the end that makes it hard to watch the video. In CFIT the event is over in a moment for those in the cabin. In this case, everyone on board was likely filled with fear for 1-2 minutes before the end. May their rest be peaceful, and I pray for their families and friends.
thank you for your insight Mark.
The Flat spin like that is quite atypical. It's a pretty hard situation to get the aircraft into.
So sad! RIP everyone who was onboard! I just flew the same aircraft with Air Swift
Yoy, this us so sad.