A security camera video tapped a twin-engine Cessna 525B Citation overshooting the runway at the Congonhas Airport in Sao Paulo, Brazil, last weekend. The captain suffered serious injuries but two others on board apparently walked away from the crash. According to a BBC report about the accident, the pilots had just completed a 700km flight and had two decades flying experience when the breaks on the aircraft failed:
As you can see from the following photos of Congonhas Airport taken from a video tribute to the airport posted on YouTube, its located in the middle of Sao Paulo (like Hong Kong’s old airport) plus the runways are often wet at certain times of the year:
The airport also has a deadly reputation as on July 17, 2007, TAM Airlines Flight 3054 slid off runway 35L (which is less than 2,000 meters long and is built on a hill top – meaning its like landing on an aircraft carrier) and crashed at high speed into a TAM Express warehouse and a gas station. A total of 199 people were killed – including passengers and those on the ground and ironically, the accident happened a day after another aircraft had skidded off the runway in wet conditions.
Incorrect engine throttle settings upon landing which caused one engine to reverse thrust and the other to increase power caused a loss of control. The accident was also the subject of the TV show Air Crash Investigation (Season 11: Episode 1, Deadly Reputation) which can also be viewed on YouTube.