Santana do Paraíso, Brazil: Three officers from the Military Police of Minas Gerais were killed on 9 October 2026 when a Beechcraft B300 Super King Air operated by the state police crashed near Vale do Aço Regional Airport in Santana do Paraíso, southeastern Brazil. All three police officers onboard died at the scene, according to the Ministry of Justice and Public Security.
The aircraft involved was a Beechcraft B300 Super King Air, commonly identified in local reports as a King Air 350, with Brazilian registration PP-EJO. It belonged to the Military Police of Minas Gerais (Polícia Militar de Minas Gerais, or PMMG) and was used by the State Aviation Command (Comando de Aviação do Estado, ComAvE).
The twin-engine turboprop aircraft was operating under the callsign Pégasus 17. It was not a commercial passenger flight. The three people aboard were police aviation officers undertaking a scheduled training and qualification check.
According to information released by the police, the aircraft departed Pampulha Airport in Belo Horizonte at approximately 15:16 local time on 9 October. It landed at Vale do Aço Regional Airport at approximately 15:59.
The aircraft subsequently took off again and crashed near the airport, close to kilometre 43 of the BR-458 highway. Reports place the wreckage in a wooded area near the airport. The reported timeline indicates that the crash occurred at approximately 16:15, while the Minas Gerais Military Fire Brigade was called to the scene at around 16:20.
The available reports do not establish the intended destination of the second take-off. The confirmed route information is the departure from Pampulha, the landing at Vale do Aço and the subsequent take-off before the fatal crash.
All three occupants died in the accident. They were identified as:
- Lieutenant Colonel Luis Fernando Silvestre, 49: Commander of the aircraft squadron within the State Aviation Command and an experienced flight instructor. Local reporting said he had accumulated more than 5,000 flight hours.
- First Lieutenant Gabriela Emília Soares Lacerda Resende, 35: A fixed-wing pilot with approximately 300 flight hours. Brazilian reports identified her as the first woman qualified to pilot fixed-wing aircraft within the State Aviation Command. She had recently returned from maternity leave.
- First Lieutenant Alice dos Santos Almeida, 34: A fixed-wing pilot with approximately 300 flight hours, according to local reporting.
The deaths were confirmed by the Minas Gerais Military Police. No survivors were reported, and no additional occupants were identified in the accounts reviewed.
The aircraft was conducting a periodic and mandatory pilot qualification flight, described in Brazilian reports. The procedure is intended to reassess pilots’ qualifications and maintain their operational authorisations under the police aviation unit’s training programme.
The flight was therefore part of the police aviation command’s scheduled training requirements rather than a routine commercial journey. The aircraft was also used for operational missions, including organ transport for transplantation, according to local media reports.
The Minas Gerais Military Fire Brigade (CBMMG) was called at approximately 16:20 local time. Firefighters, military police personnel and emergency medical service teams from SAMU responded to the incident, according to UOL’s reporting.
The crash occurred near the airport and the BR-458 highway. Authorities reported that the accident did not disrupt airport operations.
CENIPA, the Brazilian Air Force’s Aeronautical Accident Investigation and Prevention Centre, began examining the accident site and collecting evidence. The initial investigation process includes documenting the wreckage, gathering operational information and analysing evidence that could help establish the circumstances of the crash and any contributing factors.
The Brazilian Ministry of Justice and Public Security confirmed that the aircraft belonged to the Minas Gerais Military Police and said the causes of the accident would be investigated.
In a statement published on 9 October, the ministry expressed “profundo pesar” deep sorrow over the deaths and extended condolences to the officers’ families, friends and colleagues. This is an English rendering of the ministry’s Portuguese statement, rather than a verbatim English-language quotation.
During a press briefing, Colonel Flávio Santiago, the police force’s director of organisational communications, said: “Talvez essa seja a coletiva mais difícil da minha vida”, “Perhaps this is the most difficult press conference of my life”.
Santiago also paid tribute to the officers, describing them as “ases indomáveis,” translated as “indomitable aces,” and highlighting their contribution to police aviation. He said the work associated with Silvestre included more than 2,000 transplant missions.
The government of Minas Gerais declared three days of official mourning following the deaths.
