What happened
On September 19, 2016, at approximately 20:47 UTC, an EMB-810D aircraft, registration PT-VKY, crashed in a flooded area of the Fazenda Novo Horizonte, near Miranda, Mato Grosso do Sul. The flight had departed from the Cristo Redentor Farm airfield (SILU) for a return trip to Campo Grande (SBCG).
After receiving authorization from the Curitiba Area Control Center (ACC-CW) to maintain flight level 050, the aircraft lost radar contact. Search and rescue teams located the wreckage the following morning. The impact resulted in the destruction of the aircraft, with the wings completely separated from the fuselage, and the pilot sustained fatal injuries.
The investigation
CENIPA's investigation focused on the aircraft's airworthiness and maintenance history. While the pilot held valid commercial licenses and medical certification, and the aircraft had a valid airworthiness certificate, investigators identified significant discrepancies in the maintenance records. Specifically, the logs for the airframe, engines, and propellers were not up to date.
Investigators also discovered that the aircraft was being operated under a private service registration (TPP), despite being owned by a partner of an air taxi company whose operating certificate had been suspended by ANAC earlier that year. Furthermore, the investigation uncovered evidence of unrecorded repairs and unauthorized component substitutions, including propeller blades that did not match the official maintenance records.