Türkiye extends condolences to Brazil over deadly plane crash

Türkiye has extended condolences to Brazil over a deadly plane crash in Sao Paulo, which claimed the lives of 61 people.

"We are saddened to learn that 61 people have lost their lives in a plane crash in the state of Sao Paulo in Brazil. We extend our condolences to the people of Brazil and the families of the victims," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

Brazilian authorities worked Saturday to piece together what exactly caused the plane crash in Sao Paulo state the prior day that killed all 61 people on board.

Local airline Voepass' plane, an ATR 72 twin-engine turboprop, was headed for Sao Paulo’s international airport in Guarulhos with 57 passengers and 4 crew members when it went down in the city of Vinhedo.

Images recorded by witnesses showed the aircraft in a flat spin and plunging vertically before smashing to the ground inside a gated community, and leaving an obliterated fuselage consumed by fire. Residents said there were no injuries on the ground.

It was the world's deadliest airline crash since January 2023, when 72 people died on board a Yeti Airlines plane in Nepal that stalled and crashed while making its landing approach. That plane also was an ATR 72, and the final report blamed pilot error.