Early report to show history of Brazil’s ATR Voepass flight that crashed in August By Reuters

By Luciana Magalhaes, Allison Lampert and Gabriel Araujo

SAO PAULO (Reuters) – New details about the final moments of a plane operated by Brazilian regional carrier Voepass could be revealed in a preliminary report to be published on Friday as investigators weigh possible contributing factors such as icing and maintenance.

The report by Brazil’s Center for Research and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents (CENIPA) should provide a history of the Aug. 9 ATR 72-500 flight that killed 62 people when it crashed in Vinhedo, about 80 km (50 miles) northwest of Sao Paulo, industry experts said.

A final report from the Brazil-led investigation into the causes of the tragedy could come a year after the doomed flight crashed into Sao Paulo’s Guarulhos International Airport.

Air accidents usually occur due to several factors.

Some experts cited ice on the wings as a possible contributor to the crash, as severe icing warnings were issued for the region that day. An Aug. 8 inspection of the plane’s equipment, seen by Reuters, did not indicate any problems with the de-icing devices.

The Aviation Herald, a safety publication, reported that the turboprop plane, which uses turbine engines to turn the propellers that move the aircraft, returned to service just a month before the crash after being damaged in a strike by tail in March.

The ATR-72 has been involved in several cases where pilots lost control after ice build-up, including one in which a plane stalled in Norway in 2016, but the pilot regained control. In 2010, ice and pilot error were blamed for the crash of Aero Caribbean Flight 883 in Cuba, which killed 68 people.

The plane’s flight data recorder (FDR) should indicate whether the aircraft’s deicing system was activated, said Greg Feith, a former US National Transportation Safety Board investigator who investigated the crash of an ATR-72 in 1994 in Indiana.

The FDR could also indicate the presence of ice formation and stall speed alerts, added Eder Luiz Oliveira, who teaches aircraft maintenance at Unesp University in São Paulo state.

INVESTIGATION OF CANCELLATIONS

According to data from FlightAware, only two of the 190 ATR 72 flights operated in Brazil on August 9 were canceled, both by Voepass, the country’s fourth-largest airline by market share. At least 13 different ATR aircraft took off or landed in the crash area.

Despite the frost warning, an ATR pilot from Brazilian carrier Azul said fliers had not been told to avoid the area on August 9 but had taken precautions.

ATR aircraft typically have inflatable rubber “boots” installed on the wings to help remove accumulated ice.

Weather conditions and ice are also expected to be discussed at a congressional committee hearing on the crash, with guests including top airline executives, investigators and representatives of plane maker ATR, a joint venture between Airbus in Europe and Leonardo of Italy.

“Our initial investigation shows that ice was a problem for this aircraft, so we want to know how many planes flew over the area and at what time,” said Congressman Nelsinho Padovani, a senior member of the committee.

Voepass said in a statement that all systems on the ATR 72-500 aircraft were fully operational and that the company complied with all regulations.

CENIPA did not comment before Friday.

The crash captured worldwide attention after footage of the plane’s final moments in a so-called flat spin circulated on social media.

Three police officers who worked to identify the victims of the flight said the crash site provided clues to the flight’s final moments: passengers bent over their legs as if preparing for an emergency, while a mother and -he hugged his son.

The stalled plane fell without any forward movement, barely damaging a house in the housing complex where it landed, Mauricio Freire, head of Sao Paulo’s Bureau of Identification, told Reuters.

“It was the first time I’ve seen a plane hit the ground like that, it didn’t slide at all,” Freire said.