Investigation Summary
The flight was operating a scheduled service from São Paulo to Rio de Janeiro. Upon arrival at Galeão Airport, the crew encountered deteriorating weather conditions characterized by fog and heavy rain, which forced them to abandon their first approach. During the subsequent second approach, the aircraft disappeared from radar screens. Search teams located the wreckage at 01:15 the following morning near Ilha dos Ferros. The violence of the impact led to initial suspicions of an in-flight explosion, as many victims could not be identified, but physical evidence later ruled out fire or detonation. Investigators examined the possibility that a rear door had opened and struck the right engine, but the door was recovered with its locking mechanism intact. The right engine itself was found missing its propeller and front section, but it could not be determined if this damage occurred before or during the impact with the water. The lack of a flight data recorder or cockpit voice recorder, which were not standard on piston-engine aircraft at the time, left the sequence of events leading to the loss of control unresolved.
Final Conclusions
The investigation concluded without identifying a specific cause for the crash. The official report dismissed hypotheses of an on-board explosion and the accidental opening of the rear door. The damage to the right engine remained a point of interest, but the investigation could not confirm if it was a causal factor or a result of the crash. The accident is officially classified as cause unknown.
Video Analysis
No video analysis linked for this case file yet.
Systems & Failure Modes
Pratt & Whitney R-2800 Engine
The aircraft was powered by two R-2800 radial engines; the right engine was found heavily damaged, missing its front section and propeller.
Rear Right Door
Investigators studied whether this door had failed in flight, but found the locks intact, ruling out an uncommanded opening.
Interesting Facts
- 01The aircraft was not equipped with flight recorders, which were typically only installed on jet aircraft at the time.
- 02The right engine was recovered without its propeller and front section.
- 03The accident resulted in the creation of a Parliamentary Inquiry Commission (CPI) to investigate the high rate of aviation accidents in Brazil.
- 04The chairman of the inquiry commission, Miguel Antônio Bahury, lost his wife in this crash and later died himself in a 1963 Convair 340 crash.
Safety Actions & Advisories
Parliamentary Inquiry Commission
Source ↗The Brazilian Chamber of Deputies established a commission to investigate the systemic causes behind the high frequency of aviation accidents in the country during the early 1960s.
Location
APPROXIMATE POSITION · Position recorded by the wikidata coordinate without a stated precision, so the ring shows roughly where the event occurred rather than an exact point. The ring shows the accuracy the record supports, not the point of impact.