Cockpit recording captured pilot’s final plea seconds before plane crashed into mountains
A pilot made a final plea to air traffic control as the plane he was flying ran out of fuel.
In 2016, Miguel Alejandro Quiroga Murakami, 36, was flying LaMia Flight 2933, which had the first-team squad of Brazilian football club AC Chapecoense (ACF) onboard.
The flight was traveling from Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, to Medellín, Colombia - the location the football team were supposed to play at the 2016 Copa Sudamericana Finals.
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There were 77 people on board, 71 of whom went on to lose their lives. 19 of the deceased were ACF players.
While they didn't make it to the final, ACF were posthumously announced as Copa Sudamericana champions 2016 by the South American Football Confederation (Conmebol).
It was initially thought that the plane crash was because of technical difficulties, but it was later revealed that the aircraft, an Avro RJ85, had run out of fuel.
Murakami realized this at the time, and made a desperate plea to air traffic control on the ground.
Cockpit audio released after the crash revealed the late pilot said: "I need coordinates for the approach."
"Acknowledged. I have an aircraft below you carrying out its approach," air traffic control replied. "Once that is carried out I will give you coordinates."
Going on to share the urgency of the situation, Murakami said: "How long do you have to carry out the approach?
"We have a fuel emergency, that's why I am asking for the final instructions immediately!
"I need to land immediately LAMIA 2933."
Air traffic control the assured the pilot: "The runway is ready, expect rain on the surface, LAMIA 933, fire service is alerted."
The pilot then disappeared off the air traffic controllers radar as they tried to divert another plane in the area.
Proceeding to ask him for his altitude in the hopes of him hearing, Murakami told air traffic control he was at 9,000 feet.
He was still over eight miles away from the runway. When he's told this, Murakami replied: "Jesus!"
The recording then ended with the plane crashing.
An official report into the ordeal by the Colombian civil aviation agency cited fuel exhaustion and pilot error as the cause of the crash.
LaMia was said to have had inappropriate flight plan, while the pilot didn't declare an emergency until 36 minutes after fuel levels became critically low.
Only one crew member, three of the players, and two other passengers survived the tragic ordeal.
Topics: Football, News, World News
Niamh Shackleton