A 29-year-old pilot survived after his single-engine plane burst into flames mid-air and crashed in Greater Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The pilot deployed the aircraft's parachute system during the emergency, and bystanders pulled him from the wreckage, according to the fire service.
Video shows the light aircraft trailing a plume of smoke as it spirals toward the ground beneath the deployed parachute. The pilot activated the parachute to avoid plummeting at high speed.
Hospital treatment after crash
The pilot was taken to the emergency care unit of a hospital in Mateus Leme before being transferred to Hospital João XXIII in Belo Horizonte, the state's capital. He is reported to be suffering from suspected smoke inhalation.
The plane took off from Pampulha Airport at around 7:34am on Tuesday morning and got into trouble shortly afterwards at around 7:49am.
No emergency communication reported
Motiva, the operator of Pampulha Airport, said: "During the operation, there was no communication between the pilot and the Pampulha Airport Control Tower reporting any emergency, malfunction, or other incident."
The Brazilian Aeronautical Registry confirmed the plane appeared to be in good condition prior to the crash, with a valid Airworthiness Verification Certificate until September 26, 2026.
Parachute system and previous crash
The plane, a Cirrus SR22, has an unusual safety feature - the pilot can deploy a parachute that allows the whole aircraft to float to the ground in an emergency.
The news comes after a similar aircraft crashed in the UK earlier this year. The Cirrus SR20, which also features a whole aircraft parachute system, crashed near Rochdale in February. Two men died in that crash, with pictures capturing the aircraft's large parachute caught on electricity pylons on farmland near Littleborough.
Flight data showed the single-engine aircraft, which can carry five people, taking off from Birmingham Airport at around 10am on February 3 before it started to lose altitude shortly into the flight.
The whole aircraft parachute system, dubbed the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS), has saved 302 people in Cirrus aircraft, according to the Cirrus Owners and Pilots Association. The Mirror has approached Motiva for a comment.
