What happened
During a night flight originating from São Paulo-Congonhas Airport, the crew began their descent toward Rio de Janeiro-Santos Dumont Airport. The aircraft was navigating through marginal weather conditions at an altitude of approximately 5,000 feet. While flying north of the destination, the crew reported to air traffic control that they had recently passed the AF NDB.
Roughly two minutes after this communication, the aircraft type struck a mountain slope in the vicinity of Petrópolis, situated about 50 km north of Santos Dumont Airport. The impact caused the plane to disintegrate. There were 25 fatalities and no survivors among the occupants.
Findings
Investigations into the crash determined that the crew had incorrectly tuned the ADF instrument to the wrong NDB. This error led the flight to follow an inaccurate approach path, resulting in a descent at an unsuitable altitude. The investigation also noted that impaired visibility caused by nighttime operations and cloud cover acted as a contributing factor to the accident.