GoL Jetliner down in Brazil

[T-Bird76]

SAO PAULO, Brazil (Reuters) - Brazilian airline Gol said on Friday it was trying to locate a passenger plane that disappeared from the radar and failed to arrive at its destination.

The head of Brazil's airports authority, Infraero, said the Gol plane collided with another smaller plane in the Amazon region, the Globo news agency reported.

The smaller plane, an executive jet, was able to land even though it suffered wing damage, Globo reported.

Gol flight 1907 left Manaus in the afternoon but did not arrive in Brasilia as scheduled, a spokesman for the Manaus airport said.

The company said the flight had 155 passengers on board but made no mention of crew members. Brazil's civil aviation authority said the plane was transporting 155 people.

[hiss srq]

Rest In peace to all those who might have perished

[Matt Molnar]

Very sad. RIP.

Aircraft was brand new 738 delivered just 2 1/2 weeks ago!

[Bellucciman]

Looks like they found the plane. No survivors reported.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060930/ap_ ... ne_missing (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060930/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/brazil_plane_missing)

[LGA777]

In a very surprising twist it appears the Embraer Legacy and crew may have been based at ISP, at least the company who owns, operates the aircraft may be! RIP to those on the 738!

Here is a photo of the brand-new 738 on delivery on Sept 12th, the 4th GOL specs built aircraft which includes the new short-field performance enhancements !

http://www.airliners.net/open.file/1115070/L/

Regards

LGA777

[Nonstop2AUH]

Legacy is apparently 600XL on delivery for ExcelAire on LI, crew is at an airbase in the jungle and as yet no word from them. Hope our fellow NYers weren't responsibile for this awful tragedy.

ps Someone on a.net mentioned that it is being reported in Brazil that a well-known travel writer for a major NYC newspaper (who I will not name here) was getting a ride on the Legacy, which makes sense as I know his position affords him invitations to alot of exciting travel experiences, such as picking up a new bizjet at the factory. Sounds like this time he unfortunately got a bit more excitement than anticipated.

[NIKV69]

I know a pilot for Excelaire he lives and belongs to the country club in the Sayville area. The legacy was on it's delivery flight I t thought I heard. Terrible tragedy, it is going to take those people a long time to get to the wreckage is that terrain. Anybody who was lucky enough to survive the initial crash had no chance.

[LGA777]

It sounds like the 738 went straight in nose first at about 300 mph, so I really don't think survival of the impact is possible ! Again RIP to the victim's !

LGA777

[hiss srq]

rumor is that they have found survivors from the 773 which would lead me to beleive that maybe there was minimal control of the 737 before impact again this is the rumor I am hearing from several people. I hope this is true

[Nonstop2AUH]

Lots about this on a.net, much more than what is in mainstream US media thanks to members from Brazil where it is obviously a top story. Bottom line is no survivors from 737, Legacy is on the ground with apparently minor damage and crew from LI-based owners being investigated for potential negligence (unauthorized climb with transponder turned off). Just wanted to bring this thread up to date but there is alot of detail on a.net including translations of Brazilian Air Force press statements and photos of crash site as well as 600XL and its crew so check it out.

[moose135]

Just came across some photos via a.net (looks like they are from a Brazilian goverment website) of the Legacy showing damage to the left winglet & horizontal stab:

http://www.dac.gov.br/salanoticias/foto ... y2_fab.jpg (http://www.dac.gov.br/salanoticias/fotos/legacy2_fab.jpg)

http://www.dac.gov.br/salanoticias/fotos/legacy2_fab.jpg

[GrummanFan]

Article in the Times...

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/03/business/03road.html?ei=5094&en=e400a2a6d73b9dca&hp=&ex=1159934400&adxnnl=1&partner=homepage&adxnnlx=1159880403-yCUDed6XbWEukwyExL1aMQ

[moose135]

Jet that survived Brazil collision had LI charter
By Bill Bleyer
Newsday Staff Writer

October 3, 2006, 11:44 AM EDT

The corporate jet that survived a mid-air collision with a larger commercial airliner Friday over the Amazon was owned by a Long Island charter company and flown by two local pilots.

The corporate jet had just been purchased by ExcelAire, based at Long Island MacArthur Airport, and was being flown by Joe Lepore, 42, of Bay Shore and Jan Paladino, 34, of Westhampton Beach.

The Brazilian-made Legacy executive jet with seven aboard collided with a Gol airlines Flight 1907, a Boeing 737-800, which plummeted into the jungle, killing all 155 on board.

Brazil's air force said today the airliner's cockpit voice and data recorders had been recovered from the wreckage of the plane's tail.

ExcelAire spokeswoman Lisa Hendrickson said the pilots were still in Brazil and had been instructed not to talk to the media by the National Transportation Safety Board, which is assisting Brazilian authorities in the investigation.

But the firm did release a statement: "All of us at ExcelAire extend our condolences to the families and those affected by the crash of the Gol Boeing 737 jet in Manaus, Brazil. On Sept. 29, the Brazilian-made Legacy in the ExcelAire fleet was flying from Sao Paulo to Manaus, on its inaugural flight from Embraer, where it was manufactured. While in flight, the Legacy suffered a jolt to the aircraft, and noticed the left winglet was gone along with damage to the leading edge" of the wing.

The company said it is supporting the investigation by Brazilian authorities, Embraer, Boeing, the NTSB and Federal Aviation Administration. The two federal agencies are involved because the Gol plane was manufactured in the United States and the smaller jet was registered here.

The statement said "ExcelAire has a flawless safety record and has never had an accident in the history of the company," which was founded in 1985. The private jet charter and aircraft management company employs more than 90 people and has one of the largest fleets of Gulfstream jets in the metropolitan area.

Investigators are trying to determine how two new aircraft equipped with the latest anti-collision technology collided in midair. The Associated Press said that Brazilian media reports suggested yesterday that a lapse in communication between air traffic controllers in different cities may have led both planes to fly at the same altitude.

The Brazilian air force said both jets were equipped with a Traffic Collision Avoidance System, or TCAS, which monitors other planes and sets off an alarm if they get too close.

John Hansman, an aeronautics professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said air traffic in Brazil is complicated in vast regions that are not covered by radar, especially over the ocean and the Amazon jungle. Pilots often propose a route then along the way check in with controllers who verify the plane's location, altitude and bearing. "Apparently that process broke down somehow," Hansman told the AP. "When you get to the jungles of Brazil, you have people going in all directions."

It was the first major disaster for Gol Linhas Aereas Intelligentes SA, Brazil's second-largest airline, founded in 2001.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

[Midnight Mike]

When I worked for a Japanese airline, the pilots were warned that if they ever get into a crash, to jumpseat out of the Country on the first airplane you see....



http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehy ... ews&rpc=44 (http://yahoo.reuters.com/news/articlehybrid.aspx?storyID=urn:newsml:reuters.com: 20061003:MTFH90428_2006-10-03_23-32-09_N03241611&type=comktNews&rpc=44)


Judge Tiago de Abril in Mato Grosso state, where the plane went down, told Reuters police had seized the passports of U.S. citizens Joe Lepore and Jan Paladino on his orders for the duration of the investigation.


"That's a cautionary measure. If they returned to the United States it would require a lot of time and effort for us to collect their testimony," the judge said, adding that the investigation should not take long.

The two pilots, who were flying a newly built executive jet that authorities believe clipped the Boeing 737-800 in midair, arrived on Tuesday in Rio de Janeiro for medical and psychological tests as part of the investigation.

They face more questioning on Wednesday.

"They are being interviewed by the authorities and are giving their total cooperation with the investigation," said Glauco Paiva, a U.S. consulate official in Rio.

[Midnight Mike]

Some many different theories, show why we need to wait for the investigation....



Two different air controllers, one working a Brazilian Gol Airlines 737-800, the other handling an Embraer Legacy 600, evidently assigned both aircraft to the same altitude... possibly leading to what appears to be a fatal midair collision last week.

There were conflicting reports in the Brazilian media that while the Gol aircraft was cruising at 37,000 feet, that the Embraer may have been cleared to climb from FL350 to FL390, crossing the path of the airliner.
As ANN reported, the two aircraft collided Friday -- but the smaller twin-engine Embraer was able to make an emergency landing at the nearby Para military airfield. The larger 737 plummeted in a near vertical dive into the Amazon with the loss of 155 lives.

The Brazilian news agency O Globo reported an anonymous Brazilian controller admitted that the two planes were being controlled from two separate towers in the state of Para in the Amazon. Evidently, the two controllers did not communicate and both assigned the aircraft to fly at the same height.

The airspace is believed to have spotty radar coverage, according to experts quoted in the Associated Press.

Both aircraft were equipped with the latest TCAS (Traffic Collision Avoidance System) equipment and it is reported that the pilot of the Embraer claimed that he heard no alarm from the TCAS before the collision.

A business reporter for the New York Times, Joe Sharkey, was on assignment reporting on the Brazilian aircraft industry. He was aboard the Embraer and recounted in the Times, "Without warning, I felt a terrific jolt and heard a loud bang, followed by an eerie silence, save for the hum of engines."

Sharkey continued, "I was lucky to be alive -- and only later would I learn that the 155 people aboard the Boeing 737 on a domestic flight that seems to have clipped us were not... investigators are still trying to sort out what happened, and how our smaller jet managed to stay aloft while a 737 that is longer, wider and more than three times as heavy, fell from the sky nose first."


http://www.aero-news.net/index.cfm?Cont ... 3815dd3d1& (http://www.aero-news.net/index.cfm?ContentBlockID=4027a551-8c17-4889-9b5e-b753815dd3d1&)
[/quote]

[Matt Molnar]

Here's a great first hand account by John Sharkey, the NY Times writer who was onboard the Embraer.

Colliding With Death at 37,000 Feet, and Living (http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/03/business/03road.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1)

(if it asks for a login, sign up free, or use this one, goddemmit/goddemmit)

Sidenote (which is utterly unimportant relative to the 155 dead, but still noteworthy): Gawker (http://www.gawker.com/news/new-york-times/nyt-columnist-cheats-death-papers-swag-policy-205125.php) points out that Sharkey was very likely in violation of NY Times rules against travel reporters accepting free or discounted travel, whether they're on assignment or not.

[Ari707]

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (Sept. 4) - Two American executive jet pilots were ordered by a judge to stay in Brazil while authorities investigate whether they caused a midair collision with an airliner that crashed into the Amazon, killing all 155 people aboard.


Questions Remain in Crash




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Talk About It: Post Thoughts


A Brazilian newspaper reported that the pilots' Legacy jet, which was carrying seven Americans, disobeyed an order by the control tower to descend to a lower altitude just before coming into contact with Gol airlines Flight 1907.

A judge in Mato Grosso state ordered federal police to seize the passports of pilot Joseph Lepore and co-pilot Jan Palladino "as a result of the doubts surrounding the case and the emergence of indications that the accident was caused by the Legacy," Mato Grosso Justice Department press spokeswoman Maria Barbant said by telephone Tuesday.

She said the two were not arrested but "just prevented from leaving the country, at least until we know exactly what happened" in Brazil's deadliest air disaster.

The daily O Globo paper said the Legacy flew at 37,000 feet to the capital, Brasilia, but then ignored an order to descend to 36,000 feet to continue its flight to the Amazon city of Manaus. The Gol jetliner was flying at 37,000 feet from Manaus to Brasilia en route to Rio de Janeiro.

The damaged executive jet safely landed at a nearby air force base after the incident.

The pilots, who have been questioned by Mato Grosso investigators, were brought to Rio de Janeiro on Tuesday for routine physical tests. They were not injured in the incident.

The Legacy had been making its inaugural flight to the United States, where it had been purchased by an American company, said its manufacturer, Embraer.

Air force commander Gen. Luis Carlos Bueno also said the Gol flight, a brand-new Boeing 737-800, had a flight plan for 37,000 feet and the Legacy jet was authorized to fly at 36,000 feet, according to an interview Tuesday with Brazil's government news service Agencia Brasil.


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He said neither plane was authorized to deviate from the plans. He said only an investigation of the planes' black boxes could clarify the cause of the accident.

Neither the air force nor the National Civil Aviation Agency would comment on the reports.

Christine Negroni, an investigator for the aviation law firm Kreindler & Kreindler of New York, said in an e-mail that under international guidelines the Legacy should not have been at an odd-numbered altitude because it was heading northwest.

"All westbound flights fly at even numbers with 1,000 feet separation. East bound flights fly at odd numbers, same 1,000 separation," she said. "Since the American pilots were flying northwest, they should not have been at 37,000 since that's odd."

Investigators began examining voice and data recorders recovered from the jetliner Tuesday, but the National Civil Aviation Agency said one of the voice recorders was missing data.

"This unit is essential for analysis," the agency said on its Web site. It said military units were searching for missing parts.

Investigators will also look at why the pilots weren't alerted by special on-board equipment designed to avoid collisions. The air force said both jets were equipped with a Traffic Collision Avoidance System, or TCAS, which monitors other planes and sets off an alarm if they get too close.

The Gol plane crashed deep in the Amazon jungle in Mato Grosso state, some 1,100 miles northwest of Rio de Janeiro, killing all 149 passengers and six crew members.

There appeared to be only one American on the flight - Douglas Hancock, 35, of Missouri. He was in Mato Grosso for business and was returning to Rio de Janeiro where he lived, his father, Paul Hancock, told the Southeast Missourian newspaper.

Bueno said about 100 bodies were found within a half-mile of the wreckage and were flown to the coroner's office in Brasilia for identification. He said rescue workers would have to open more clearings in the dense jungle to try to recover the rest.

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a team of investigators, who would be joined by representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing Co.

The U.S. agencies were involved because the Gol plane was manufactured in the United States and the smaller jet was registered there.

[Nonstop2AUH]

It seems now obvious that both the Legacy and the 737 were at 37,000 ft. Can anyone here who flies or works in aviation explain under what legitimate circumstance the Legacy would fly at an odd-numbered altitude in the direction it was heading?

[Matt Molnar]

It seems now obvious that both the Legacy and the 737 were at 37,000 ft. Can anyone here who flies or works in aviation explain under what legitimate circumstance the Legacy would fly at an odd-numbered altitude in the direction it was heading?

It's a month later, but now your answer has come out:


Newsday... (http://www.newsday.com/news/local/longisland/ny-licont1104,0,2697506.story?coll=ny-top-headlines)
Officials: Pilots not at fault

Brazil's air traffic control agency has confirmed that a transcript of a recording between controllers and an executive jet involved in a collision over the Amazon jungle verifies the American pilots' account that they were told to fly at the same altitude as the Boeing 737 that crashed after the impact, a Brazilian newspaper has reported.

The agency's confirmation follows an earlier report detailing the transcript of the conversation between pilot Joseph Lepore, of Bay Shore, and a Brazilian controller. Lepore was flying a jet owned by ExcelAire of Ronkonkoma with Jan Paladino, of Westhampton Beach, when it collided with Gol Airlines Flight 1907, which crashed, killing all 154 people aboard.

[NIKV69]

i was reading something about how these guys are living in a hotel right on the beach but don't leave the hotel. For various reasons. Even though ATC cleared these guys for the same altitude as the 738 I get the feeling the Brazilian prosecutor has latched on to this "they turned off the transponder" thing and is going to run with it.

[mirrodie]

Anyone read Newsday yesterday and today regarding the pilots wives?

[NIKV69]

Anyone read Newsday yesterday and today regarding the pilots wives?


No, post a link Mario.

Got it already please disregard

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/longi ... -headlines (http://www.newsday.com/news/local/longisland/ny-liwife1104,0,2369817.story?coll=ny-linews-headlines)

One of the Pilots is a fellow resident of Bayshore. I would love to take him for a beer at the Ground Round. He might need it when he gets back.

[PhilDernerJr]

I heard that the transponder BROKE, or rather that the article I was reading implied it did.

[NIKV69]

I heard that the transponder BROKE, or rather that the article I was reading implied it did.

I don't know if I read the same article but I read one that made a point that the same type of AC had a couple of other instances where the transponder malfunctioned. As a way to explain why the trasnsponder wasn't working in this case. I still get the feeling the authorites are going to try to railroad these two. It's a little scary.

[Matt Molnar]

I'm guessing that the transponder is manufactured by a foreign firm and not by Embraer...do we know? If the transponder failure is Embraer's fault, then these guys will be the scapegoats. If they can blame the failure on the foreign firm though, these guys might have a shot. Brazil is the most advanced country in South America, but they're still brimming with corruption.

[PhilDernerJr]

Here's the Newsday article:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15557337/

[bonanzabucks]

I've been to Brazil several times and almost moved there last year. I'm pretty familiar with the country and culture there. I love the country a lot, but as much as I do, Brazilians can be really immature with their reactions and have a huge tenancy to blame their own problems on outsiders. So, their reaction to this really doesn't surprise me.

From reading the Brazilian newspapers, up until they leaked the blackbox transcript, they media placed the blame solely on the pilots, most likely because they were "gringos" and needed a foreign scapegoat for a made in Brazil catastrophe. Now that the transcript has been leaked and the pilots are not responsible for the crash, they're trying to pin something else on them so they can blame the "foreign devil", as they love to do. I should also mention that the Brazilian Air Force, which runs the ATC down there, is being very mum about these recent findings and still refusing to take responsibility. And notice that the leak came from Canada, where the flight recorder is being studied, not Brazil. In Brazil, even if the evidence is right there in front of their face, the authorities would still refuse to concede responsibility. There's so much pride there, especially in their government.

If these guys are convicted for something, they'll get the book thrown at them and be stuck there for a long time, just so the authorities can have their scapegoat. On the flip side, the country has the second highest murder rate in the world (after Venezuela) and common criminals, gangsters and murderers pretty much get a slap on the wrist. The judicial system is so messed up there. Don't forget, this is a country that started "fingerprinting" (I went through this several times, the machine is normally off when they do this. The only reason is so they can inconvenience people) Americans for spite with no legal ground for it.

So, as "advanced" as Brazil is, it's still Brazil and still a developing country. It's really advanced in many things and some people live as modern lives as we do here, but it's also a disaster in other aspects. It's unfortunate because the country has a lot of potential and Brazilians are generally open and welcoming people, but really the people and government have only themselves to blame, yet they will -- as in this case -- always try to find a devil "gringo" to pin the blame on.

[NIKV69]

Don't forget, this is a country that started "fingerprinting" (I went through this several times, the machine is normally off when they do this. The only reason is so they can inconvenience people) Americans for spite with no legal ground for it.


Are you referring to when Amereicans would enter the country? If so this wasn't started by Brazil. They got pissed that Bush started doing it to Brazilians entering the US and out of spite they started doing it. Then an AA captain flipped the bird while getting his pic taken and that didn't help matters.

I have traveled to Brazil a lot too and you are right about all those things. I think these pilots are in trouble. Big trouble. They are not on American soil and are at the mercy of the courts there which is not a good thing.

[bonanzabucks]

Don't forget, this is a country that started "fingerprinting" (I went through this several times, the machine is normally off when they do this. The only reason is so they can inconvenience people) Americans for spite with no legal ground for it.


Are you referring to when Amereicans would enter the country? If so this wasn't started by Brazil. They got pissed that Bush started doing it to Brazilians entering the US and out of spite they started doing it. Then an AA captain flipped the bird while getting his pic taken and that didn't help matters.

I have traveled to Brazil a lot too and you are right about all those things. I think these pilots are in trouble. Big trouble. They are not on American soil and are at the mercy of the courts there which is not a good thing.

The difference between what we did was that we did it for everyone and for security reasons, so that was the official statement. They did it solely for spite because "they could". Not to mention, the judge who did it was from some small farming town and had an agenda to fill. His statements when he implemented the new measure were pretty funny. He equated our fingerprinting to something only the Nazis in Germany would do. The way the judicial system works there, basically any judge, even from some small two-bit farming town, can make up laws at a whim and implement them at will.

Funny thing was that in Rio, they never fingerprinted anyone because they knew that it would decrease tourism and they went out of their way to make US tourists feel welcome when they arrived at the airport. But most tourists don't arrive in Rio...

I hear that the fingerprinting is only practiced sparingly now, even in Sao Paulo, because lots of US tourists stopped going to Brazil after it was done. Seriously, anyone who went through the thing would agree that it was a joke. Each time I was "fingerprinted", the machine was off. They just wanted to delay US passengers. Brazil was also considering dropping their visa requirement (I'm not sure if they actually went through with this or not) for US Citizens as a way to increase tourism and investment.

[DHG750R]

Looks like the Legacy600 that began it's journey to the US in 2006, finally arrived in 2010.



Legacy 600 Recovered From The Jungles Of Brazil By A US Company

November 20, 2010 - Constant Aviation, a maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility headquartered at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, announced they were the service center of choice to perform the recovery of the Embraer Legacy 600 involved in an incident mid-flight over Brazil in 2006.
The aircraft has remained out of service in a remote military base in the jungles of Brazil since the incident. The Constant Aviation Mobile Aircraft Recovery Team traveled to the aircraft to perform the recovery which consisted of wing repairs, avionics equipment replacement, elevator repair and replacement, and extensive systems testing.
The 10 member team, comprised of maintenance and avionics technicians, engineers, and crew members, spent three weeks in the remote location performing those necessary repairs to get the aircraft to the necessary flight standards... more
http://avstop.com/news_november_2010/legacy_600_recovered_from_the_jungles_of_brazil_by _a_us_company.htm

[NIKV69]

Wow kewl! Epic bump!