Rio de Janeiro, Oct 31 (EFE) Brazilian military sources have said that at least nine of the 11 people on board the Brazilian air force plane that disappeared over the Amazon Thursday morning survived an emergency landing.
“Of the 11 occupants of the plane, one is missing and there are indications of a possible death. The other nine are fine,” the air force authorities said Friday.
The Cessna C-98 Caravan made a forced landing Thursday morning in the Amazon forest along the Itui river between the villages of Aurelio and Rio Novo, the authorities added.
The crashed plane was spotted by an air force plane on a search operation Friday morning after it was located by the Matis Indians, the indigenous people of the Amazon forest.
The air force said it began the rescue operation with two Black Hawk helicopters, a KC-130 Hercules airplane, an SC-95 Bandeirante plane, two C-105 Amazonas, and an R-99 plane with the help of an army Super Cougar helicopter.
The ill-fated Cessna had lost contact with the air traffic control while flying above the cities of Cruzeiro do Sul in Acre state and Tabatinga in the state of Amazonas.
Aboard the aircraft were four crew members and seven officials of the health ministry who were taking part in a campaign to vaccinate Indians in some 50 villages in the Amazon region.
The Cessna C-98 Caravan has the room for 14 people and is generally used to carry passengers and cargo on short flights.
