Accident Details
A twin-engine cargo aircraft departed Recife-Guararapes Airport in the early morning on a round trip carrying a load of medicines. The flight made complete stops at Patos, Sousa, Mossoró, Caicó, and Currais Novos. On the final leg from Currais Novos to Recife, after a total flight time of 3 hours and 50 minutes, both engines failed simultaneously while approaching Recife-Guararapes Airport. The crew declared an emergency and attempted an immediate landing. The aircraft collided with trees and power cables before crashing in a wooded area located 17 kilometers short of runway 18. Both pilots sustained injuries, and the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.
Official Findings
The probable cause of the accident was determined to be a double engine failure on final approach due to fuel exhaustion. The following contributing factors were identified: poor flight preparation and planning, crew overconfidence, miscalculation of the total fuel quantity needed for the entire mission, wrong fuel consumption calculation, failure to account for taxi time and wind components in fuel calculations, incorrect values relative to aircraft performance, and poor crew resource management.