Two people killed and at least six injured after a small plane, Beechcraft King Air F90, crashed into a moving bus in the busy district Barra Funda of São Paulo, Southern Brazil on Friday, February 7.
The plane and a public bus exploded on impact.
Pieces of the aircraft flew off as thick, dark plumes of smoke rose into the air.
The local fire department struggled to stop the flames from spreading. According to them, the tragic crash happened around 7:20 a.m. local time after the plane tried to perform an emergency landing five minutes after taking off from Campo de Marte Airport.
Emergency services recovered two bodies from the wreckage of the aircraft. A motorcyclist and a woman on the bus were injured by flying debris, while four others sustained minor injuries. The remaining passengers on the bus were safely evacuated.
Reports indicate that before the crash, the control tower lost contact with the plane.
Governor Tarcísio de Freitas confirmed on X that the two victims were the pilot, Gustavo Medeiros, and the aircraft’s owner, Márcio Carpena.
The plane was en route to Porto Alegre, in the southern region of Rio Grande do Sul.
An investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crash is still ongoing.
According to witnesses, the aircraft first clipped a tree before crashing onto a busy street, where it collided with a moving bus.
As per Business News Today, an expert said the accident could be a result of technical issues, considering the pilot’s desperate attempt to force a landing. “When an aircraft loses power or suffers mechanical failure shortly after departure, the pilot’s options are limited. Urban environments like São Paulo make emergency landings even more hazardous,” the expert said, as per the publication.
Sadly, in recent years, Brazil witnessed several high-profile accidents. This raised the question of the safety of the country’s aviation, aircraft maintenance, pilot training, as well as regulatory oversight.
Please SHARE this article with your family and friends on Facebook.
