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Cargo plane has problems landing at viracopos

• Source (Web Archive)

Translated to English via DeepL

Viracopos International Airport, in Campinas, remains closed after an accident on Saturday (13). Initially, the runway was due to reopen at 8pm this Sunday. However, this deadline was postponed to 10pm, according to the Brazilian Airport Infrastructure Company (Infraero). The airport has been closed to landings and take-offs since 8pm on Saturday due to an accident involving a Centurion cargo plane. Airport officials are working to remove the aircraft and its cargo. RAC Portal contacted Centurion’s press office, which said that the aircraft had a problem with its landing gear when it touched the ground.

The MD-11 freighter has a transport capacity of 80 tons. According to the press office, it is a state-of-the-art aircraft. The priority is to remove the cargo in order to lighten the weight of the plane and move it to a remote area of the airport. The company’s technicians and engineers are working on the aircraft to speed up the process of removing the equipment. There is no forecast for the runway to be cleared. The MD-11 was loaded with electronic components, pharmaceutical products and automotive parts.

After the plane has been removed, the runway will remain closed until all the cleaning and safety inspections have been carried out. The airport lounge was packed with passengers throughout Saturday night and early Sunday morning waiting for their flights to be decided. Many passengers were relocated to other airports such as Congonhas and Guarulhos. For those who were due to travel on Sunday morning, the recommendation is to contact the airlines.

Infraero confirmed, at 3.50pm this Sunday, that there was damage considered superficial to the runway and that it has already been repaired. The grooves originated when the aircraft hit the ground, due to the impact. The problem that resulted in the incident with the aircraft will be investigated by the Air Force, Civil Aviation and the company that owns the plane.

A Centurion cargo plane from Miami (USA) had problems landing on Saturday night (13) at Viracopos airport in Campinas. According to Infraero, an incident, not yet detailed by the company responsible, occurred at the time of landing. The accident occurred at around 8pm and no one was injured. Because of the incident, the airport’s runways were closed for take-off and landing. The main runway was closed to remove the aircraft. Infraero said that after the removal, the runway will remain closed until all the cleaning and safety inspections have been carried out.

Infraero also said that flights scheduled to land in Campinas were transferred to Congonhas airport in São Paulo and Guarulhos airport. For those who were scheduled to take off from Viracopos, the recommendation is to contact the airlines.

The airport lobby was packed with passengers waiting for their flights to be decided. Pedro Almeida, who was going to Rio de Janeiro, had his flight canceled because of the accident. He told Portal RAC that all the planned flights had been canceled and that airport staff were advising passengers on where to go again. ‘Several passengers are being sent by bus to São Paulo. As I live in Campinas, I’m going to go home and wait to be relocated," she said. Luciene Medeiros, from Campinas, was in the departure lounge at Viracopos when she received the news that her flight to Belo Horizonte had been canceled. “They told us that because of the problems they were going to transfer us to São Paulo,” she said.

The Ponte Preta delegation did not fly to Rio de Janeiro on Saturday night because of the accident. The team has a game against Fluminense this Sunday and was due to fly to Rio de Janeiro from Viracopos. According to information from Ponte Preta’s press office, the squad will only leave early Sunday afternoon for the capital of Rio de Janeiro.

Note from Azul

Azul Linhas Aéreas informs that its operations at Viracopos airport, in Campinas, are suspended due to an interdiction on the runway caused by an aircraft from a cargo airline. As a result, all flights to and from the Campinas airport are canceled until 8pm today (14/10). Sales of flights to and from Campinas are also suspended, in order to facilitate the reaccommodation of customers affected by the canceled flights.

The company is constantly evaluating the information on the removal of the aircraft from the runway with the competent authorities in order to resume operations. Azul is providing all the necessary assistance to its customers, in accordance with resolution 141 of the National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC), and is reaccommodating them in the best possible way.

Customers are asked to confirm the status of their flight through the service channels (Call Center 4003-1118, website www.voeazul.com.br or in stores).

Note from Infraero

Infraero informs that the landing and take-off runway at Campinas/Viracopos International Airport (SP) has been closed since 7.55pm on Saturday (13/10), due to an incident with an MD-11 cargo aircraft, owned by the American company Centurion, which had technical problems during landing. Infraero and Centurion began work to remove the aircraft from the runway last night. The operation should be completed by early this evening, and the runway is expected to be fully cleared by 8pm this Sunday (14/10).

The National Civil Aviation Agency (ANAC) has been monitoring the situation since it was notified of the incident last night and is working with a team of 15 people directly involved, including directors, superintendents, managers and civil aviation inspectors (Inspac).

The Agency deployed Inspacs to Viracopos Airport to monitor the provision of assistance to passengers whose flights were affected by the incident, in accordance with Resolution 141/2010. According to the resolution, in the event of a flight cancellation, it is the company’s duty to inform passengers. In the event of a flight delay, cancellation or interruption, as well as if a passenger is denied boarding, the carrier must ensure that the passenger who appears for boarding has the right to material assistance, such as the right to communication after one hour’s delay, to food after two hours’ delay and to accommodation after four hours' delay.

If passengers feel they have been harmed or have had their rights violated, they should first contact the airline they have booked with to claim their rights as a consumer. With the purchase of an airline ticket, passengers enter into a transportation contract with the company. If the company’s attempts to solve the problem are unsuccessful, the user can refer the complaint to ANAC, which does not prevent them from also referring it to the competent consumer protection bodies and/or the Judiciary. ANAC can be contacted via the internet (Fale ANAC) or by telephone [0800 725 4445](tel:0800 725 4445) (which operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, including English and Spanish).