Passenger plane crash in Brazil kills all 61 on board

SAO PAULO An airplane carrying 57 passengers and four crew members crashed in Brazil's Sao Paulo state on Aug 9, killing everyone on board, local officials said.

The aircraft, an ATR 72-500 operated by Voepass airline, was travelling from Cascavel in southern Parana state to Sao Paulo's Guarulhos International Airport when it crashed in the city of Vinhedo.

Voepass initially said the plane was carrying 58 passengers, but a statement later on the airline's website revised the figure to 57.

Images broadcast on local media showed a large plane nosediving at high speed, while other footage showed a large column of smoke rising from the crash site in what appeared to be a residential area.

"There were no survivors," the city government in Valinhos, which was involved in the rescue and recovery operation in nearby Vinhedo, said in an e-mail sent to AFP.

Vinhedo, with about 76,000 residents, is located approximately 80km north-west of Sao Paulo.

Recovery of the victims' remains for "identification" has begun and "will continue throughout the night", Sao Paulo State Governor Tarcisio de Freitas told reporters at the scene.

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has declared three days of mourning.