# Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul Flight 144

The Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul Flight 144 was a domestic commercial route operated by Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul, departing from Belo Horizonte to Rio de Janeiro, with stops in Florianópolis, Curitiba, Porto Alegre, and São Paulo. On the night of May 3, 1963, the aircraft operating this route, a Convair 340 registration PP-CDW, took off from Congonhas Airport in São Paulo at 19:30, bound for Santos Dumont Airport, Rio de Janeiro. Shortly after takeoff, the crew received an audible warning of an engine fire and attempted to return to the airport. During the maneuver, the aircraft lost altitude and crashed, resulting in the deaths of 37 occupants and injuries to another thirteen.

## Aircraft

In 1946, Cruzeiro do Sul was granted the right by the Brazilian government to operate flights between Brazil, Puerto Rico, and the United States. To serve these routes, the company acquired 3 Douglas DC-4 aircraft. However, Cruzeiro demanded a subsidy from the Brazilian government to operate these routes, which was not accepted by the authorities, leading the company to abandon them. Consequently, the DC-4s operated briefly on domestic routes until they were returned in 1952. To replace them, Cruzeiro do Sul ordered 19 Convair aircraft between 1954 and 1960, including 10 used CV240s (acquired from American Airlines), 4 CV340s, and 5 CV440s. The first of these aircraft, the CV340, was received in March 1954. This aircraft was manufactured in 1954, assigned serial number 159, and registered as PP-CDW. At that time, Cruzeiro do Sul named its planes after stars. The Convair 240/340/440 aircraft served Cruzeiro do Sul until 1967 when they were replaced by NAMC YS-11. Of the 19 aircraft operated, 6 were lost in accidents. This contributed to the early replacement of the Convairs.
| Aircraft | Registration | Model | Notes |
| Regulus | PP-CET | CV-240 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Aldebaran | PP-CEU | CV-240 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Betelgeuse. | PP-CEV | CV-240 | Destroyed in S. Paulo on 15/1/63 |
| Polaris | PP-CEW | CV-240 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Not identified | PP-CEY | CV-240 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Dube. | PP-CEZ | CV-240 | Destroyed in Vitória on 9/5/62 |
| Rigel | PP-CFA | CV-240 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Not identified | PP-CFB | CV-240 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Not identified | PP-CFC | CV-240 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Alderamin | PP-CFD | CV-240 | Accident, no casualties, in Rio de Janeiro on May 20, 1965, total loss. |
| Sirius. | PP-CDW | CV 340 | Destroyed in S. Paulo on 3/5/63 |
| Canopus | PP-CDY | CV-340 | Accident, no casualties, in Parnaíba on January 22, 1963, total loss. |
| Vega | PP-CDZ | CV-340 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Antares | PP-CEA | CV-340 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Castor | PP-CEN | CV-440 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Polux | PP-CEO | CV-440 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Alcyon. | PP-CEP | CV-440 | Destroyed in Curitiba on 16/6/58 |
| Procyon | PP-CER | CV-440 | Retired from service in 1967 |
| Altair | PP-CFE | CV-440 | Replaced Alcyon. Retired from service in 1967 |

## Accident

After a forty-minute delay caused by the replacement of the original aircraft scheduled for the 19:00 Ponte Aérea flight due to a defect, the aircraft finally took off from Congonhas Airport at 19:40. Shortly after takeoff, fire and overheating alarms sounded for engine No. 2 (right side). The pilot declared an emergency and began procedures for landing. To address the serious issue, the crew opted to shut down and feather engine No. 2 and activate the emergency extinguishers to put out the fire in this engine. During brief contact with the Congonhas control tower, the crew requested visual confirmation of fire in engine No. 2. Upon visually checking the aircraft, the air traffic controller did not find any signs of fire in the engines and relayed this information to the Sirius crew. Despite the absence of visible fire, the fire alarm bell continued to ring. Consequently, the crew concluded that it was a false alarm but maintained the decision to make an emergency landing.
During the landing procedures, an unsuccessful attempt was made to restart engine No. 2, and the propeller of this shut-down engine began to spin freely, causing significant drag and impairing the aircraft's stability. After initiating a turn to align with the runway, the aircraft lost lift and crashed into a residence located at 2356 Avenida Piassanguaba, near the airport, catching fire afterward. Despite the strong impact with the ground, twelve passengers (including the actor Renato Consorte) and one crew member survived the accident. Among the deceased was Congressman Miguel Bahury, who presided over a Parliamentary Inquiry Commission in the Chamber of Deputies, aimed at investigating the causes of the high number of air accidents in the country at that time. The creation of this commission was motivated by the crash of another Convair 340 during Real Transportes Aéreos Flight 435, in which Congressman Bahury's wife lost her life.

## Consequences

Later on May 3, the 23:00 Ponte Aérea flight suffered an incident with the explosion on the ground of an engine on another Cruzeiro Convair 340, causing many passengers to forgo flying at that time. The accident highlighted the precarious state of flight operations in Brazil, particularly in aircraft maintenance.
   Commercial aviation (in Brazil) has improved but still accumulates serious problems and errors.
During the investigations, it was found that engine No. 2 of the Sirius had shown problems during another flight to Porto Alegre, having been repaired, tested, and approved by Cruzeiro do Sul maintenance teams at that airport. It was later determined that the fire alarm was, in fact, a false alarm (while the real issue was an overheating of engine No. 2). Due to the false alarm, the crew activated the fire extinguishers for engine No. 2. During the attempt to restart it, the crew forgot to turn off the extinguishers, which, when activated, automatically cut off the fuel supply and electrical command to the engine. This error may have been made by Cruzeiro pilots due to their familiarity with the cockpits of Convair CV240 and CV440, which were identical, unlike the cockpits of the Convair CV-340. Technical failures in aircraft were common during this period in national aviation and highlighted the lack of efficient maintenance.
Cruzeiro do Sul operated nineteen Convair aircraft, losing six in accidents. These accidents contributed to the early retirement of these aircraft in the company.
* Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engine used in the Convair 340. The overheating of the engine caused the false fire alarm in the PP-CDW Sirius.
* The cockpits of the Convair 240 and 440 were similar, while the cockpit of the Convair 340 was exclusive to this model. Due to this detail, several airlines converted their CV 340 cockpits to CV 440 (as shown in the photo above).
* View of Congonhas Airport. The Convair crashed in the area to the left of the airport.