Small plane just misses golfer as it crashes into course, video shows
Washington PostAug 19
Plane Crash in Brazil Kills All 61 on Board
Above: Sao-Paulo skyline at sunset, May 2003 in Sao-Paulo, Brazil. Image copyright: Gilles Mingasson/Contributor/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
According to officials, a plane carrying 61 people crashed outside of São Paulo Friday afternoon, leaving no survivors. It reportedly fell 17k feet within a minute's time. Initially it was feared 62 had perished, but one ticketed passenger wasn't onboard.
According to the airline Voepass, the plane took off from the city of Cascavel in southern Paraná — roughly 450 miles from São Paulo-Guarulhos International Airport — and later crashed in the city of Vinhedo.
The Spin
Narrative A
This tragedy has struck the hearts and minds of government officials and citizens alike. In reponse, emergency workers have been deployed to the scene, including firefighters and police as well as disaster victim identification personnel. Alongside the initial rapid response, an investigation has been launched to find out what was behind this disaster.
Narrative B
While no one knows exactly what happened here and an investigation is needed, footage of the crash appears to show what's called an aerodynamic stall, in which there's not enough air speed over the wings to keep the plane flying. Audio also shows that the engines were still running, meaning the air didn't stall due to a loss of engine power.