Wikipedia

Draft:VASP Flight 780

VASP Flight 780
A VASP Boeing 737-200 similar to the one involved
Accident
DateJune 22, 1992 (1992-06-22)
SummaryControlled flight into terrain due to pilot error
SiteNear Cruzeiro do Sul International Airport, Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil
7°35′4.3″S 72°54′59.15″W / 7.584528°S 72.9164306°W / -7.584528; -72.9164306
Aircraft
Aircraft typeBoeing 737-2A1C
OperatorVASP
RegistrationPP-SND
Flight originPresidente Médici International Airport
DestinationCruzeiro do Sul International Airport, Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre
Occupants3
Passengers1
Crew2
Fatalities3
Survivors0

VASP Flight 780 was a cargo flight from Rio Grande to Cruzeiro do Sul that crashed on 22 June 1992, killing all three occupants. During approach, the Boeing 737 freighter aircraft crashed on the bank of the Môa River, near Mâncio Lima, killing all three people on board.

Aircraft and crew

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The aircraft involved was a Boeing 737-2A1C (convertible), that first flew on 22 December 1975.[1] It was delivered to VASP in January 1976 in a convertible configuration.[2] The aircraft's last maintenance check was on 16 June 1992 in Porto Velho.[3]: 4  The crew consisted of captain Dárcio Lino de Matos (aged 29), first officer Ricardo Desidério Lopes (aged 31), and mechanic Mauro da Silva Borges (aged 25).[4]

Captain Dárcio had graduated from the Aeroclub of São Paulo and had 4,581 flight hours, while the co-pilot graduated from Midway Aviation in the United States and had 2,437 flight hours.[3]: 3  Mechanic Borges had worked for the airline since 1988.[5]

Accident

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The aircraft's previous flight was from Rio Branco to Porto Velho.[6] On 21 June at 23:55 local time, the aircraft departed Presidente Médici International Airport bound for Cruzeiro do Sul International Airport.[6][7] Flight 780 carried 14,135 tonnes (31,162,000 lb) of cargo,[6] including two motorcycles, two conditioning units, dairy products, fruits and vegetables, mail, documents, cigarettes, shoes, margarine, and cosmetics.[6][4] This was within the aircraft's 16,000-tonne (35,000,000 lb) limit.[6]

The crew reported no problems during departure.[3]: 2  At 00:40 local time, the aircraft began its descent from flight level 310 via the Delta 1 arrival for an approach to runway 10. During the descent, the cargo compartment fire alarm started to go off intermittently.[3]: 2 [8] Captain Dárcio instructed mechanic Mauro to grab the fire extinguisher and go into the cargo hold, but Mauro returned stating that there was no signs of fire. Dárcio then asked Mauro to close the cabin door and that they would check again once they landed.[8][9]

Dárcio made radio calls to air traffic controllers in Rio Branco and Cruzeiro do Sul (only getting responses from the latter)[4] requesting fire trucks to be on standby at Cruzeiro do Sul,[6] but did not declare an emergency.[6] The crew then continued landing prparations but failed to realize that they had descended below the glide slope[8][9][10] At 01:05 local time,[3]: 2  the aircraft struck trees 15 kilometres (9.3 mi; 8.1 nmi) from the runway,[8][9][10] then crashed into the ground at 138 knots (256 km/h; 159 mph) and exploded, killing the crew. The crew's bodies were struck by cargo on impact and mutilated.[3]: 7–8  The accident left a debris trail 980 feet (300 m) long.[3]: 2 

Response

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The wreckage was discovered at 4:50 am by another aircraft.[5] The rescue teams were joined by residents, the Brazilian Army, fire department, and Infraero employees.[6] The rescue operation was coordinated by Luiz Antônio Cruz, VASP's vice president of operations. Rescue teams had to create new paths as they had difficulty reaching the crash site, which could only be reached by boat or helicopter.[6][5] The Cruzeiro do Sul Military Group found the crew's bodies at 4:30 PM.[5] João Negreiros, the superintendent of Infraero at the time, flew over the site and said "the plane burned to the ground. Only the wreckage remained".[4]

Some of the wreckage still remains at the crash site in poor condition, while most of the wreckage was carried away by floods and ebbs. Some people looted pieces of debris as a souvenir.[8][9][10]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "PP-SND VASP Boeing 737-2A1C(A)". Planespotters.net. 7 July 2023. Retrieved 2024-06-29.
  2. ^ "#TBT - Boeing 737-200 All Pax no Brasil" [#TBT - Boeing 737-200 All Pax in Brazil]. Passageiro de Primeira (in Portuguese). Equipe. 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2024-07-03.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g "Relatório Final" [Final Report] (PDF) (in Portuguese). Aeronautical Accidents Investigation and Prevention Center. 1993-04-02. Retrieved 2024-06-29.
  4. ^ a b c d "Acidente com avião cargueiro no Acre mata três tripulantes" [Cargo plane crash in Acre kills three crew members] (PDF). Jornal do Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). No. 76. 1992-06-23. p. 8. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
  5. ^ a b c d Uchôa, Marco (1992-06-23). "Presidente da Vasp afirma que a manutenção foi feita" [Vasp President states that maintenance was carried out]. O Estado de S. Paulo (in Portuguese): 3.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Avião de carga da VASP cai e mata 3 no Acre" [VASP cargo plane crashes, killing 3 in Acre]. Folha de S.Paulo (in Portuguese): 3. 1992-06-23.
  7. ^ "Accident description PP-SND". Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved June 16, 2011.
  8. ^ a b c d e Cardoso, Raimari (2022-05-09). "Aficionado por aviação visita destroços de Boeing acidentado em Mâncio Lima, em 1992" [Aviation enthusiast visits wreckage of Boeing that crashed in Mâncio Lima in 1992]. ac24horas (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2024-07-02.
  9. ^ a b c d "Cruzeirenses entusiasta da aviação visitam destroços do Boeing 737 que caiu em Mâncio Lima há quase 30 anos" [Aviation enthusiasts from Cruzeiro visit the wreckage of the Boeing 737 that crashed in Mâncio Lima almost 30 years ago.]. Juruá Online (in Portuguese). Redação. 2022-05-09. Retrieved 2024-07-02.
  10. ^ a b c "Acreano apaixonado por aviação visita destroços do Boeing 737 que caiu em Mâncio Lima no ano de 1992" [Acrean passionate about aviation visits the wreckage of the Boeing 737 that crashed in Mâncio Lima in 1992]. O Juruá Em Tempo (in Portuguese). 2022-05-09. Retrieved 2024-07-03.
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