What happened
On December 14, 2022, at 13:30 UTC, an Embraer ERJ 190/100 IGW, registration YV2966, operated by CONVIASA, departed Maiquetia International Airport for Cancun, Mexico. The aircraft was carrying 87 persons, including 79 passengers and 8 crew members.
While cruising at 19,30 and transitioning through the Curacao FIR, the flight crew identified simultaneous failures in both the "BLEED 1" and "BLEED 2" systems. In response to the malfunction, the crew maintained an altitude of 19,000 feet and notified Caracas ACC of their intention to return to the departure station. The crew performed the Quick Reference Handbook (QRH) procedures; although the manual did not specify repeating the procedure, the crew performed the checklist three times, which eventually corrected the bleed system failures.
To avoid landing at overweight limits, the crew requested descent and vectors to the MARES position to enter a holding pattern for fuel burn. The aircraft subsequently landed at Maiquetia at 16:03 UTC. There were no injuries and no damage to the aircraft.
The investigation
The JIAAC investigation included interviews with the pilot in command, reviews of crew licenses and medical certifications, and an examination of maintenance records. The aircraft's airworthiness certificate and recent maintenance logs from the operator's maintenance organization (OMAC-N 431) were reviewed.
Technical analysis of the aircraft's systems yielded a "NO CORRELATIONS" message, providing no specific details regarding the origin of the bleed failure. Consequently, maintenance personnel performed cleaning of both Torque Motor Controls and their respective filters, as well as inspections of the bleed lines to rule out obstructions or contamination.