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| Brazil jet disaster probe begins | Brazil jet disaster probe begins |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| Rescue workers and crash investigators are searching the wreckage of an Airbus 320 Brazilian passenger jet that crashed in flames at Sao Paulo airport. | |
| All 186 people on board Tam Airlines Flight 3054 from the southern city of Porto Alegre died, as well as up to 15 people on the ground. | |
| The plane slipped on Congonhas airport runway as it landed in driving rain. | |
| The pilot tried to take off again, but the jet slid across a busy road, hit a fuel depot and warehouse, and exploded. | |
| See where and how the crash unfolded | See where and how the crash unfolded |
| Congonhas airport is notorious for its short and often slippery runway, and its proximity to the city centre. | |
| Among others, the investigation is to look into the condition of the recently resurfaced runway, concerns about which had been the subject of court decisions. | |
| Runway ban | |
| Reports spoke of motorists being killed on the road and people jumping out of the windows of the low-rise Tam Airlines building. | Reports spoke of motorists being killed on the road and people jumping out of the windows of the low-rise Tam Airlines building. |
| There was a big explosion from behind the buildings, and fire and smoke flew up into the air Witness Guido Reusch Witnesses describe horror | |
| "The plane accelerated when it reached the end of the runway and tried to take off again to avoid the road, but it crashed into the building and exploded," eyewitness Junior Matos told AFP news agency. | |
| Guido Reusch, who was on an apartment block balcony overlooking the runway, told the BBC that he had watched the plane coming in. | |
| "It touched down in front of us, left the runway, slid off behind the buildings at the end of the runway and crashed," he said. | "It touched down in front of us, left the runway, slid off behind the buildings at the end of the runway and crashed," he said. |
| "There was a big explosion from behind the buildings, and fire and smoke flew up into the air, and we could smell the smoke being blown across the airport," Mr Reusch added. | "There was a big explosion from behind the buildings, and fire and smoke flew up into the air, and we could smell the smoke being blown across the airport," Mr Reusch added. |
| AIRBUS A320 Launched: 1998In operation: 1,700Operators include: British Airways; Air France; Air Canada; China Eastern Airlines; Iberia; United Airlines; Jet Blue Airways | AIRBUS A320 Launched: 1998In operation: 1,700Operators include: British Airways; Air France; Air Canada; China Eastern Airlines; Iberia; United Airlines; Jet Blue Airways |
| More than 100 bodies have now been recovered from the wreckage, many of them charred beyond recognition. | More than 100 bodies have now been recovered from the wreckage, many of them charred beyond recognition. |
| A Brazilian opposition congressman, Julio Redecker, is reported to have been among those on the flight. | A Brazilian opposition congressman, Julio Redecker, is reported to have been among those on the flight. |
| President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has declared three days of national mourning for the victims of what is thought to be Brazil's worst air disaster. | |
| The state's attorney general, Rodrigo Pinho, said the authorities would carry out a thorough crash investigation "to determine the cause and to identify who was responsible". | The state's attorney general, Rodrigo Pinho, said the authorities would carry out a thorough crash investigation "to determine the cause and to identify who was responsible". |
| In February, a local judge banned the use of the airport by Fokker 100, Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737-700 jets, but this was overturned by an appeals court. | In February, a local judge banned the use of the airport by Fokker 100, Boeing 737-800 and Boeing 737-700 jets, but this was overturned by an appeals court. |
| Remedial work, including laying a new surface, has been carried out in recent months. | Remedial work, including laying a new surface, has been carried out in recent months. |
| However, questions remain about whether the runway had been sufficiently grooved to drain water in heavy rains. | However, questions remain about whether the runway had been sufficiently grooved to drain water in heavy rains. |
| A day before Tuesday's accident, another plane skidded off the airport's runway. | A day before Tuesday's accident, another plane skidded off the airport's runway. |
| Congonhas airport is very close to the city centre | |
| Previously, the worst accident in Brazil's aviation history occurred last September, when a Gol Boeing 737 flying from Manaos to Brasilia crashed into the Amazon jungle, killing all 154 people on board after a mid-air collision with a small private jet. | Previously, the worst accident in Brazil's aviation history occurred last September, when a Gol Boeing 737 flying from Manaos to Brasilia crashed into the Amazon jungle, killing all 154 people on board after a mid-air collision with a small private jet. |
| In 1996, a Tam Airlines Fokker-100 crashed minutes after take off from Congonhas airport, bursting into flames and killing all 96 people on board and three on the ground. | In 1996, a Tam Airlines Fokker-100 crashed minutes after take off from Congonhas airport, bursting into flames and killing all 96 people on board and three on the ground. |
| Click here to return | Click here to return |
| Are you near the scene? Is there a safety issue with inner city airports? If you have any information you would like to share with the BBC you can do so using the form below: | Are you near the scene? Is there a safety issue with inner city airports? If you have any information you would like to share with the BBC you can do so using the form below: |
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