News Plane carrying members of Brazil’s Chapecoense Real football team has crashed

[IronRain]

A plane carrying the Brazil’s Chapecoense football team has crashed in Colombia, according to media reports. It was reportedly carrying 72 passengers en route to the Copa Sudamericana finals. The plane reported electrical problems.
The plane crashed at around 10:15pm local time in Cerro Gordo in the municipality of La Union, according to Mi Oriente.
The Aerospace Avro RJ85 suddenly lost altitude from FL21 to FL15 on mountain zone near MDE aft being on holding path.

[ame="https://twitter.com/360RadioCo/status/803485233219833856"]360 Radio Colombia on Twitter: "#Urgente | Primeiras imagens do avião onde viajava o time Chapecoense. https://t.co/wVSilDxgXi"[/ame]

Source: http://www.airlive.net/breaking-pla...-crashed-near-the-colombian-city-of-medellin/

 

[IronRain]

UPDATE 0700 UTC Reports say there are at least six survivors.

 

[Notebook]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-38140981

A plane carrying 81 people, including a top Brazilian football team, has crashed on its approach to the city of Medellin in Colombia.
Police say five people survived the crash but the rest of those on board died.
The chartered aircraft, flying from Brazil via Bolivia, was carrying members of the Chapecoense team.

I'm guessing that is not a charter flight?

N.

 

[sorindafabico]

Everyone is in shock here, they were at their very best.

Chapecoense: who are the Brazilian team on board the plane that crashed?

 

[Urwumpe]

The last flight tracking data looks like it was out of control at the end of the flight.

 

[Notebook]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-38160713

Chapecoense air crash: Leaked tape shows plane 'ran out of fuel'

 

[Linguofreak]

Some stuff I was seeing today, but have been unable to confirm from other sources, suggests that the flight distance slightly exceeded the maximum range of the aircraft, and that the flight crew reported that they were nearing fuel exhaustion, but ATC took no action.

 

[Hielor]

Some stuff I was seeing today, but have been unable to confirm from other sources, suggests that the flight distance slightly exceeded the maximum range of the aircraft, and that the flight crew reported that they were nearing fuel exhaustion, but ATC took no action.

At least in US airspace, it's not ATC's responsibility to "take action" when an airplane is low on fuel. It's the flight crew's responsibility to declare an emergency if they need preferential treatment. If the flight crew isn't saying "we need to land somewhere else," ATC isn't going to tell them to.

 

[Urwumpe]

At least in US airspace, it's not ATC's responsibility to "take action" when an airplane is low on fuel. It's the flight crew's responsibility to declare an emergency if they need preferential treatment. If the flight crew isn't saying "we need to land somewhere else," ATC isn't going to tell them to.

exactly and the crew did not declare emergency before fuel was really out.

But the rumours are right, the distance is really 50 nm longer than maximum range, the flight was permitted by some fishy deal.

 

[Notebook]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-38231774

The authorities in Bolivia have arrested the head of the airline involved in a crash last week that killed 71 people, including most of the Brazilian football team, Chapecoense.

It doesn't get any better.

N.

 

[Urwumpe]

Strange - taking off with too little fuel is usually the responsibility of the captain, not the airline owner. I know there can be a lot of pressure to take off, but the final word has the flight captain.

 

[Notebook]

Indeed, when I was being instructed and later solo, fuel state was constantly stressed. It was something drummed into you.
Who knows what pressures the Captain was under, but he and others have paid for that in the worst way.

N.

 

[n122vu]

Strange - taking off with too little fuel is usually the responsibility of the captain, not the airline owner. I know there can be a lot of pressure to take off, but the final word has the flight captain.

I've seen a few documentaries on air disasters. In those cases, and it sounds like it is also the situation here, there was intense pressure to complete flights even when safety was knowingly compromised, and threats of termination for not complying. In the case of this flight, the football team was on board, and getting them to the match of a lifetime would be a big deal, so it's possible the owner of the airline instructed them to do so "at any cost," and might have made threats of termination that included statements such as, "You'll lose your job, and I'll make sure you never fly for an airline again." That's speculation of course, but a likely scenario.

 

[Enjo]

(...) and might have made threats of termination that included statements such as, "You'll lose your job, and I'll make sure you never fly for an airline again." That's speculation of course, but a likely scenario.

Same thing happened with the Dead Guru Lech Kaczyński. First time he ordered laying off a captain who didn't comply with his orders compromising security, and the second time he tried the same, another captain complied... but they crashed.

(OT: and many polish fools still believe that there was a bomb explosion on board. Oh the propaganda.)

 

[Urwumpe]

(OT: and many polish fools still believe that there was a bomb explosion on board. Oh the propaganda.)

Its more comfortable to believe a comfortable lie, than the truth that their biggest hero and prophet is just another fool like many others and that some intoxicated Oleg from Gdansk could maybe do the same job as well or better.

Still, its terrifying, if you think about how much damage one such fool can cause, if he forgets about his status... its better to have a fool who knows it.

 

[Andy44]

It'd also common to look for a convenient culprit to punish when the actual party responsible is dead or otherwise unable to be held accountable.

So let's hold of on judging the airline officials until we hear more facts. They may have pressured the pilot, or the pilot may have screwed up on his own, at this time it could be either one or both.