On 29 October 2023, a

Cessna 208B The Cessna 208 Caravan is a utility aircraft produced by Cessna. The project was commenced on November 20, 1981, and the prototype first flew on December 9, 1982. The production model was certified by the FAA in October 1984 and its Cargom ...

utility aircraft operated by ART Táxi Aéreo crashed and exploded shortly after takeoff from

Rio Branco International Airport Rio Branco-Plácido de Castro International Airport is the airport serving Rio Branco, Brazil. Since April 13, 2009 the airport is named after José Plácido de Castro (1873–1908) a politician leader of the Acrean Revolution. It is oper ...

, killing all 12 people on board.

Accident

The aircraft took off from Rio Branco bound for

Envira Envira is a municipality in the Brazilian state of Amazonas. Its population was 20,393 as of 2020, and its area is .IBGE The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics ( pt, Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística; IBGE) is the a ...

, Amazonas. Some passengers were traveling to receive medical treatment. At around 6:30 a.m., the flight took off but soon after, it crashed into a wooded area just after the runway. The aircraft exploded on impact, killing all twelve passengers and crew on board. Samu ambulances, military police vehicles and a Ciopaer helicopter traveled to the location of the accident to assist with the actions. The firefighters' work was made difficult as the crash occurred in a difficult to access location.

Aircraft

The aircraft was a Cessna 208B, with registration number PT-MEE, manufactured in 1993. According to the

National Civil Aviation Agency A civil aviation authority (CAA) is a national or supranational statutory authority that oversees the regulation of civil aviation, including the maintenance of an aircraft register. Role Due to the inherent dangers in the use of flight vehicles ...

, the plane was in good standing and had authorization to fly an

air taxi An air taxi is a small commercial aircraft that makes short flights on demand. In 2001 air taxi operations were promoted in the United States by a NASA and aerospace industry study on the potential Small Aircraft Transportation System (SATS) ...

, with its

certificate of airworthiness A standard certificate of airworthiness is a permit for commercial passenger or cargo operation, issued for an aircraft by the civil aviation authority in the state/nation in which the aircraft is registered. For other aircraft such as crop-spraye ...

valid until August 2024. One of the passengers of the accident flight reported that the aircraft had "problems" on a previous flight.

Passengers and crew

The passengers included six men, three women and a baby aged one year and seven months. The pilot and co-pilot had experience and were trained according to the ART company lawyer. Of the 12 occupants on the flight, seven were from the city of

Eirunepé Eirunepé is a Brazilian municipality in the southwest part of the state of Amazonas, about 1,150 kilometers a straight line from Manaus Manaus () is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian state of Amazonas. It is the seventh-l ...

, in the interior of Amazonas. Other residents were from Envira, the plane's destination. According to the Acre State Government, the victims were burned to death.

Investigation

The

Aeronautical Accidents Investigation and Prevention Center Aeronautical Accidents Investigation and Prevention Center ( pt, Centro de Investigação e Prevenção de Acidentes Aeronáuticos, CENIPA) is a unit of the Brazilian Air Force that investigates aviation accidents and incidents in Brazil. It is hea ...

was activated and the government of

Acre The acre is a unit of land area used in the imperial and US customary systems. It is traditionally defined as the area of one chain by one furlong (66 by 660 feet), which is exactly equal to 10 square chains, of a square mile, 4,840 square ...

said that an

investigation Investigation or Investigations may refer to: Law enforcement * Investigation, the work of a detective * Investigation, the work of a private investigator * Criminal investigation, the study of facts, used to identify, locate and prove the guilt ...

will be conducted.

References

{{Aviation accidents and incidents in Brazil 2023 disasters in Brazil October 2023 events in Brazil Aviation accidents and incidents in 2023 Aviation accidents and incidents in Brazil History of Acre (state) Accidents and incidents involving the Cessna 208 Caravan Rio Branco, Acre

Accident

Aircraft

Passengers and crew

Investigation

See also

References