A LAMIA Bolivia Avro RJ-85, registration CP-2933 performing flight LMI-2933 from Santa Cruz (Bolivia) to Medellin (Colombia) with 72 passengers and 9 crew, was descending towards Medellin about 15-20nm southeast of Medellin in the area of La Ceja (Colombia) at 21:56L (02:56Z Nov 29th) when the aircraft disappeared from radar screens. The Airport of Medellin reported a search was initiated and the crash site has been located in the municipality of La Ceja at the slopes of Cerro Gordo (approximate coordinates N5.9805 W75.4183), there may be survivors. Authorities confirmed 5 survivors (3 players, a flight attendant and a journalist) and 76 fatalities stating one of initially 6 survivors died in hospital care.
In a press release the Airport of Medellin reported further, that the aircraft had declared emergency with Medellin’s Control Tower at 22:00L reporting electrical problems.
Colombia’s Air Force have deployed search and rescue forces, the crash site located between La Ceja and Medellin is only accessible by land, helicopters can not operate due to low visibility due to fog.
National Police reports 6 survivors.
Emergency services reported the aircraft did not catch fire increasing the chances of survivors. There may be up to 10 survivors.
Two players are already in hospital care in La Ceja.
Colombian Authorities reported the search and rescue was suspended over night, 5 survivors and 25 fatalities have been recovered so far. One of the initial 6 survivors died in hospital. No further survivors have been located, 76 occupants lost their lives in the crash.
Colombia’s Civil Aviation Authority confirmed flight LMI-2933 arriving from Bolivia crashed in the municipality of El Ceja. CAA staff including the director of the CAA have been dispatched to Medellin’s Rio Negro Airport and have established a command post to address the situation. The aircraft had requested a priority landing, subsequently contact with the aircraft was lost.
The last transponder data were received from the aircraft at 02:56Z as the aircraft descended through FL155 about 11nm southsoutheast of Medellin’s Rio Negro Airport.
The aircraft was carrying the Brazilian soccer team of Chapecoense to play the finals of Copa Sudamericana 2016 in Medellin. The finals were suspended indefinitely as result of the crash.
Rionegro Airport is at an elevation of 2141 meters/7025 feet. The VOR Rio Negro RNG is located on top of Cerro Gordo at an elevation of 2642 meters/8669 feet.
The Aviation Herald
Colombian authorities say 76 people including members of a Brazilian soccer team were killed in a plane crash Monday night in northwestern Colombia. There were five survivors.
The charter aircraft took off from Bolivia and was flying over the town of La Union at around 10 p.m. when electrical flaws were reported, according to a statement from the José María Córdova International Airport in Rionegro, Colombia. The plane crashed shortly after in a mountainous area in the Antioquian municipality, roughly 22 miles from the airport, which serves the city of Medellin.
There were 72 passengers and nine crewmembers on board, including members of Chapecoense, a Brazilian first division soccer team. The team was expected to play in the Copa Sudamerica finals against Atletico Nacional on Wednesday in Medellin.
“It’s a tragedy of huge proportions,” Medellin Mayor Federico Gutierrez told Blu Radio on his way to the scene of the crash.
“May God accompany our athletes, officials, journalists and other guests traveling with our delegation,” the club said in a statement on its Facebook page.
Chapecoense defender Alan Ruschel, 27, is in a stable condition after being pulled from the plane’s wreckage, according to media reports. The disaster management agency also said that players Marcos Danilo Padilha and Jacson Ragnar Follmann survived as well as passengers Rafael Correa Gobbato and Ximena Suarez. The survivors were taken to nearby hospitals.
Rescue efforts are underway and authorities are asking residents to steer clear of the crash site.
The South American soccer federation canceled games until further notice and said its president, Alejandro Dominguez, was travelling to Medellin.
The plane is a British Aerospace 146 short-haul plane. It is not clear what caused the crash, but Colombia had been hit by heavy rains and thunderstorms in recent hours.
USA Today
LAMIA Bolivia RJ85 crashes with the Chapecoense football team onboard
