Unfortunately, shortly after taking off from Belo Horizonte International Airport (CNF), the Brazilian aircraft had an engine failure. Fortunately, the aircraft was a Cirrus SR 22 and had a parachute. Someone near the scene of the incident captured the incident on camera. The plane came down smoothly after the engine failed, and the pilot opened the parachute. The infant and all other passengers on board these unique airplanes are secure.
The first people on the site were members of the fire assistance department, who found the four adults and two children, one of whom was only three days old. According to the local press, a Brazilian Cirrus light plane had to deploy its parachute last month after experiencing engine issues, saving the lives of everyone on board. The Cirrus Sr. 22 is one of the uncommon aircraft with a whole-plane emergency recovery parachute system, known as the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System, according to the manufacturer (CAPS).
Avião tem problemas no motor após a decolagem em Belo Horizonte e piloto aciona paraquedas, salvando todos a bordo pic.twitter.com/oXYdlha6PT
— AEROIN (@aero_in) March 11, 2023
CAPS is designed to save the lives of passengers on board the aircraft. It does not, however, prevent structural damage to the aircraft. In the event that the main door fails after landing, the plane also features emergency side doors. According to the Brazilian news site aeroin.net, the plane with the registration PS-VAC belongs to a company in Caratinga, a city in Minas Gerais’ interior. They further reported, “According to ANAC data, the plane is quite new and was manufactured in 2022. Unconfirmed information conveys that the aircraft was only 43 hrs into the flight.”