Brazil mourns 62 dead in tragic plane crash; black box analyzed

Following the passenger plane crash in Brazil, in which 62 people died, investigators are analyzing the black box to determine the causes of the tragedy. Preliminary findings indicate possible wing icing. The President has declared three days of national mourning.

Following the passenger plane crash, in which 62 people died, investigators are analyzing the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder. The devices are meant to help determine the causes of the tragedy, which occurred near the Brazilian metropolis of São Paulo. They have been sent to the Centre for Research and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents (Cenipa) in the capital for analysis.

Currently, actions related to the flight, operational conditions, and human factors are being examined, and analyses of the aircraft components and systems are being conducted. The preliminary report on the crash should be ready within 30 days.

The VoePass airline plane crashed on Friday at noon EST during a flight from Cascavel to São Paulo. Fifty-eight passengers and four crew members died.

By Saturday evening – 30 hours after the crash – the fire brigade had recovered all the bodies.

According to the head of Cenipa, both environmental and technical factors, as well as possible human errors, are being examined. Meteorological data from the period of the crash indicate turbulence, storms, and icing in the area.

As a possible cause of the crash, experts are considering, for example, wing icing – which could cause the plane to lose lift, turning it into a "stone without lift" – reported the Brazilian news portal UOL.

The General Director of VoePass, Eduardo Busch, did not rule out the possibility that icing had accumulated on the wings, but the pilots were experienced, and the plane took off with functioning systems. "The plane was 100 per cent operational at the time of take-off," said Busch. Other experts suggest that the crash may have been caused by several interacting factors.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva declared three days of national mourning. The accident is considered one of the most tragic in Brazilian aviation history – according to Brazilian media.