Tragic Plane Crash in Sao Paulo State Claims Lives of All 61 Passengers, Airline Reports

Brazilian television network GloboNews showed footage of the plane drifting downward vertically, spiraling as it fell.

SÃO PAULO, Brazil — Tragedy struck in Brazil’s Sao Paulo state on Friday as a passenger plane carrying 61 people crashed into a gated residential community in Vinhedo, killing all on board, according to the airline VOEPASS.

VOEPASS initially reported 62 people were on the ill-fated flight but later corrected the number to 61. The flight was en route to Guarulhos International Airport in Sao Paulo when the disaster occurred.

“The company regrets to inform that all 61 people on board flight 2283 died at the site,” VOEPASS stated. “At this time, VOEPASS is prioritizing provision of unrestricted assistance to the victims’ families and effectively collaborating with authorities to determine the causes of the accident.”

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, at an event in southern Brazil, requested a minute of silence for the victims. He stated that it appeared that all passengers and crew had perished, without specifying the source of this information.

Emergency services, including firefighters, military police, and civil defense authorities, descended on the crash site in Vinhedo. Authorities cordoned off the area as journalists observed from outside while waiting for updates.

Local resident Ana Lucia shared her harrowing experience, “I thought it was going to fall in our yard. It was scary, but thank God there were no victims among the locals. It seems that the 62 people inside the plane were the real victims, though.”

Associated Press-obtained video showed bodies amidst burning wreckage. GloboNews broadcast footage of smoke rising from the obliterated fuselage and earlier clips of the plane spiraling downwards.

Brazil’s air force dispatched a team to the crash site. Concurrently, the Federal Police initiated an investigation, sending specialists in plane crashes and disaster victim identification.

At Guarulhos airport, VOEPASS staff were notifying and supporting victims’ families in a private room. The plane involved was an ATR 72-500 twin-engine turboprop, although VOEPASS did not immediately confirm this detail.

French-Italian aircraft manufacturer ATR, confirming the plane model, committed its specialists to assist in the investigation and support the airline.

The ATR 72, primarily used for short flights, has been involved in incidents resulting in 470 fatalities since the 1990s. The aircraft is produced by a joint venture between Airbus and Italy’s Leonardo S.p.A.

The crash site, Capela neighborhood, is located in a district distant from the center of Vinhedo, a city with 77,000 residents. The flight had departed from Cascavel in the state of Parana.