Air Force Plane Crashes With Nine Aboard in Brazil

The Associated Press Published: Sep 27, 2001

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) - An air force cargo plane with nine crewmen aboard crashed into mountains near Rio de Janeiro on Thursday. Rescuers said they didn't see any signs of survivors. The hulking C-130 plane, known as a Hercules, was returning to Afonsos Air Force Base when it struck the Tiririca Mountains in Niteroi, about 25 miles east of Rio, the air force said in a statement.

The Air Force Command in Brasilia, the capital, declined to confirm any fatalities. An officer said by telephone that the air force didn't want family members of the crew to find out through the press.

But rescuers at the crash site said there were no signs of survivors.

Residents said they had heard an explosion shortly after noon and that the plane appeared to have collided with a large rock, sometimes called "False Sugarloaf" for its similarity to the famous Rio tourist attraction.

The weather was rainy, with fog covering the mountaintops. Access to the crash site was hampered by the dense, surrounding Atlantic forest.

AP-ES-09-27-01 1753EDT

-- Anonymous, September 27, 2001