‘The pilot was skillful’ said Defense Minister to CNN Brasil

Before the F-5M fighter, from the Brazilian Air Force (FAB), crashed into the ground this Tuesday, 22, in an air accident recorded in the metropolitan region of Natal, in Rio Grande do Norte, the aircraft’s pilot managed to carry out the procedure ejection.

He was rescued by a team from the Rescue Brigade and taken in good health to the Natal Air Base Hospital (BANT) for further examinations and has already contacted Armed Forces officials. The identity of the soldier was not revealed.

In an interview with CNN Brasil, the Minister of Defense, José Múcio, stated that the pilot was “skillful” in taking the aircraft to an open, uninhabited field, and managed to eject, even with the aircraft on fire.

“The pilot was skillful. He managed, even with fire already on the plane, to avoid the area that had houses and crashed in an area with no residence. The pilot managed to eject and, thank God, we had no casualties”, said the minister.

According to Múcio, the pilot contacted the FAB commander, Air Lieutenant General Marcelo Kanitz Damasceno, as soon as he arrived at the air base. “The pilot called immediately, as soon as he arrived at the base, he was picked up. He called Brigadier Damasceno, who is the commander. Okay, nothing happened. Now let’s check what happened to the plane”, he added

The plane crashed in a forested area close to residential condominiums in the city of Parnamirim. Before the crash, the aircraft was recorded by members of the public catching fire in the rear. Other planes were seen training in the region.

The Cruzeiro do Sul Exercise (Cruzex) is scheduled for the period between November 3rd and 15th. The objective is to promote joint training in conflict scenarios and the exchange of experiences between participating countries. This is the largest war training in Latin America, with the participation of the Navy and Army.

The 2024 edition will bring together 16 countries, including: Brazil, South Africa, Germany, Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, United States, Ecuador, France, Italy, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Sweden and Uruguay. More than 2,000 military personnel and around 50 aircraft, including Brazilian and foreign, will be involved. There is still no confirmation whether the aircraft was part of this operation.

The accident will be investigated by the Air Accident Prevention and Investigation Center (Cenipa) with the aim of identifying the possible factors that contributed to the accident and preventing new similar occurrences from occurring.