2025 Aquidauana Cessna 175 crash

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2025 Aquidauana Cessna 175 crash
N9432B (35618415443).jpg
A Cessna 175 Skylark, similar to the one involved in the accident
Accident
Date23 September 2025 (2025-09-23)
SummaryPossible unsuccessful landing attempt after a go-around at a non-permitted time during a visual flight [1]
SiteBarra Mansa farm, Aquidauana, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil
Aircraft
Aircraft type Cessna 175 Skylark [2]
Aircraft namePT-BAN
Occupants4
Passengers3
Crew1
Fatalities4, including Chinese architect Kongjian Yu
Survivors0

On 23 September 2025, a small plane crashed in the rural area of the Brazilian Pantanal-located municipality of Aquidauana, Mato Grosso do Sul. All four occupants, including Chinese landscape architect and urban planner Kongjian Yu, were killed. [3] [4] [5]

Contents

Background

The plane's passengers were in the region to film a documentary about a project that would address issues surrounding climate changes based on the idea of "sponge city", an urban planning model in China that emphasizes the use of infrastructures capable of absorbing rainwater in order to mitigate flood risks and improve the urban climate. The concept was developed by Kongjian Yu, a Chinese architect among the people on board. [6] Yu founded the College of Architecture and Landscape at Peking University. [3] He was in the country also for the 14th International Architecture Biennale of São Paulo, in the same month. [5]

Two people from the team were going to board the flight, but they were unable to do so due to the plane's maximum capacity of four people. [7]

Aircraft

According to the reports, the aircraft, a Cessna 175 Skylark, [2] registered as PT-BAN, belonged to the family of the pilot, Marcelo Barros, who used it on internal flights as a guide to places such as the Barra Mansa farm. [7]

Official documents showed that the plane was authorized to operate only private air services, and was denied a license to execute air taxi activities. [8]

Investigation

According to preliminary information, the plane made three flights on the day of the crash, and tried to land after the permitted time for the runway, which operated only visually. On the second landing attempt, after a go-around, the aircraft lost altitude and crashed, causing an explosion. [1] A witness said he heard the explosion at exactly 6 p.m. local time and then saw the smoke. [7]

Despite the initial allegations, the police ruled out the possibility of white-lipped peccaries (pig-like ungulates found in Central and South America) on the runway. [9]

Victims

NationalityDeaths
Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg China1
Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil3

The four occupants on the flight were: [4]

All the bodies were found burned beyond recognition. [10]

Reactions

Following Yu's death in the crash, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva wrote on his social media: "In times of climate change, Yu became a global reference with his sponge cities, which unite quality of life and environmental protection". In a post on X, Brazilian Vice President Geraldo Alckmin stated that Yu was known for his "notable contributions to sustainable urbanism, the preservation of biodiversity, and the protection of the planet," adding that his legacy will continue to inspire those dedicated to ecological cause. [3]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Morel, Lucia; Frias, Silvia (24 September 2025). "Avião fez três voos antes de acidente e tentou pouso após horário permitido". Campo Grande News (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  2. 1 2 Cardoso, Marcel (24 September 2025). "Queda de avião no Pantanal mata arquiteto chinês e cineastas brasileiros". Aero Magazine (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  3. 1 2 3 Hughes, Eléonore (24 September 2025). "Chinese landscape architect Yu Kongjian among 4 killed in a plane crash in Brazil". AP News. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  4. 1 2 "Acidente Aéreo no Pantanal: Arquiteto Kongjian Yu entre as vítimas". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). 24 September 2025. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  5. 1 2 Ionova, Ana (24 September 2025). "Small Plane Crashes in Brazil, Killing Chinese Architect". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  6. ↑ Giló, Naum (24 September 2025). "Queda de avião: cineastas filmavam doc sobre projeto planeja-esponja". Metrópoles (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 Morel, Lucia (24 September 2025). "'Sobreviventes', dois membros da equipe não embarcaram em voo que matou quatro". Campo Grande News (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  8. ↑ Farias, Julia (25 September 2025). "Avião que caiu no Pantanal voava em horário irregular, diz polícia". CNN Brasil (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  9. ↑ Libni, Thais; Quiroz, Dyego (24 September 2025). "Polícia descarta hipótese de que porcos selvagens na pista forçaram arremetida de avião que caiu no Pantanal". G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  10. ↑ Marques, Bruna (24 September 2025). "Corpos carbonizados em queda de avião devem ser identificados por DNA". Campo Grande News (in Brazilian Portuguese). Retrieved 27 September 2025.
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