Investigation says 10 people to blame for 2007 TAM Airlines crash at São Paulo

Remember the TAM Flight JJ 3054 accident at São Paulo, Brazil's Congonhas Airport in July of 2007? The Airbus A320 aircraft, which was arriving in rainy weather from Porto Alegre, overran the runway, crossed a highway, crashed into buildings, and caught fire. The accident, said to be Brazil's worst aviation disaster, took the lives of all crew members and passengers on board, as well as a number of people on the ground.

Several days ago, an investigation of the TAM accident concluded that 10 government and airline officials were to blame for the accident. If the 10 individuals are formally charged and convicted, they could face prison terms of up to 6 years.

RELATED: Click here to view all posts about TAM Flt 3054 on Aircrew Buzz.

---

Here is an Associated Press video report about the accident report.



If the video does not play or display properly above, click here to view it on YouTube.

Update on TAM crash in Sao Paulo

Over the past few days, there has been a lot of speculation in the press that pilot error was to blame for the crash of TAM Airlines Flight 3054 at São Paulo's Congonhas airport last month. The speculation began after it was revealed that the crew retarded the thrust lever for the number one engine during touchdown, but left the throttle for the number two engine in its forward position.

Some news media not specialized in aviation matters seem to have concluded that this was an illustration of pilot error. Aviation industry insiders are not so quick to assume that pilot error was the reason that a throttle was in the wrong position, noting that it was possible the pilots had shifted the throttle lever correctly but that the plane's computer had failed to respond due to a mechanical failure.

According to a report on Flight Global.com that quotes industry sources:

For reasons yet to be explained, the pilot, in the final moments before touchdown, retarded only the thrust lever for the left-hand engine – first into the ‘idle’ position, then into ‘reverse’. This action disconnected the auto-thrust, as per its design. The failure to move the right-hand engine’s thrust lever to the reverse position runs contrary to the standard operating procedure which calls for both levers to be set to ‘idle’ and then 'reverse' – even with a thruster reverser inoperative.

It is unclear why the right-hand engine thrust lever was left in position. Newly-released cockpit-voice transcripts have notably highlighted the crew’s awareness that only the left-hand engine had an operable thrust-reverser; the right-hand reverser had been deactivated. This, however, should not have made a difference to the thrust retardation procedure.

As the aircraft began to slow after touchdown the thrust being produced by the right-hand engine remained at the level it was at when the auto-thrust had disconnected. With the thrust lever forward the spoilers would not have deployed, and the auto-brake would have similarly been inhibited.

In the cockpit transcript the co-pilot appears to state that the A320’s spoilers did not activate on touchdown and, as the situation develops, the pilots are heard to say that they cannot slow the aircraft. Flight-data recorder information indicates that the pilots repeatedly pressed on the brakes in a bid to stop the jet but did not retard the right-hand thrust lever.

Officials at Brazil's aviation accident investigation agency, CENIPA, have pledged to keep an open mind about the cause of the accident, saying that the investigation will cover mechanical or system failures and pilot error as well as airport infrastructure.

An English translation of the TAM Flight 3054 CVR transcript has been posted on the FlightGlobal.com website, along with an interpretation of the clues to possible causes of the crash that the transcript provides.

Related: Click here to view all posts on this blog about the TAM Flt 3054 accident.

TAM releases names of Flight JJ 3054 crew

TAM Linhas Aereas SA has released the names of the crew members who were lost when Flight JJ 3054, an A320 arriving from Porto Alegre, crashed at São Paulo's Congonhas Airport yesterday. They are:

• Pilots
• KLEYBER LIMA
• HENRIQUE STEPHANINI DI SACCO
• Flight Attendants
• CASSIA NEGRETTO
• DANIELA BAHDUR
• RENATA GONÇALVES
• MICHELLE LEITE

In addition to the crew, these TAM employees were on board Flight JJ 3054 as passengers:

• ANGELICA ROJEK
• EVELYN CAMPOS
• MIRELLE M. F. BETTIOL
• MARCO ANTONIO SILVA
• FABIANE RUZZANTE
• ARNALDO RAMOS BATISTA
• FABIOLA KO FRATAG
• VINICIUS COSTA COELHO
• ALINE MANTEIRO CASTIGO
• MARCEL CASSAL VICENTIM
• FERNANDO TERGOLINA
• RICARDO KLEY SANTOS
• MADALENA SILVA
• ALVARO ALEXANDRE DA ROCHA PINTO BREGUEZ
• PATRICIA HAUSCHIELD
• MARIA ALINE DA SILVA
• KAREN MELISSA RAMOS
• MICHELLE SILVEIRA UNTERBERGER

Condolences to the families of these individuals, and to the entire staff and management of TAM on this tragic loss.

For further updates in both English and Portuguese: TAM Informa

UPDATE July 18, 2007: A TAM press release lists employees, believed to have been at the cargo terminal at the time of the accident, who are missing: Marcos A. L. Curti; Antonio Gualberto Filho; Elaine Tavares da Silva; Ana Paula Camargo; Alexandre L. Catussatto; Aldeniz Pedro de Lima.

Employee Michele Dias Miranda passed away at the hospital.

TAM Airbus A320 accident in Sao Paulo, Brazil

News media are reporting that an Airbus A320 aircraft operated by Brazilian carrier TAM has been involved in an accident at Congonhas - São Paulo International Airport (CGH). Few reliable details about what happened are available at this point, except to say that the aircraft had just landed after a domestic flight from Porto Alegre in southern Brazil, when it apparently overran the runway, crossed a highway, crashed into buildings, and caught fire.

News reports vary as to exactly how many souls were on board, but initial reports suggest that the number may be at least 150. Some stories also suggest that people in or near the buildings into which the aircraft crashed may have been injured, but there is no official word on casualties or survivors at this time.

There is some early video of the accident scene on the CNN website.

I will post details or new developments as they are confirmed.

UPDATE July 17, 2007: It has been confirmed by officials at TAM Linhas Aereas SA, that the flight number of the accident aircraft was TAM Flight JJ 3054 from Porto Alegre to São Paulo, and that there were a total of 170 passengers and six crew on board. TAM airlines said relatives of those who may have been aboard the flight can call the Brazil toll-free number 0800 117900 for information. The airline promises to post updates on its TAM Informa page as more when more information becomes available.