Lionel Messi and Argentina team were '18 minutes from crashing' on same plane that carried Chapecoense
The same plane which crashed near Medellin on November 28 was used to fly Lionel Messi and his team across South America early last month
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The same plane which crashed in Colombia on November 28, killing 71 on board, including members of a Brazilian football team, was reportedly 18 minutes from running out of fuel as it flew the Argentina national side across South America early last month.
The British Aerospace 146 plane, which was confirmed by the Jose Maria Cordova International Airport as LAMIA Bolivia RJ85, registration CP-2933, was used to fly Lionel Messi and his team from Belo Horizonte to Buenos Aires on November 11 ahead of their World Cup qualifier against Colombia four days later.
And reports from Brazil have now suggested that the Argentina team were only 18 minutes away from meeting the same tragic fate as the 71 people who lost their lives in last month’s crash.
Messi and his team mates were allegedly in the air for four hours and four minutes – aboard an aircraft which could fly with a full fuel tank for just four hours and 22 minutes.
Citing data from FlightRadar 24h, Brazilian publication Folha de Sao Paulo claims that when the team flew on the plane on November 11, it had just an 18 minute margin for error before landing safely.
Argentine authorities insist on a 45 minute difference between flight length and fuel capacity.
The same plane went on to crash into a mountainside near Medellin, Colombia, five minutes prior to completing its journey on Monday 28 November.
It later emerged that the aircraft, which was carrying members of Chapecoense Real football club, had ran out of fuel after a refuelling stop in Cobija, on the border between Brazil and Bolivia, was abandoned because did the airport did not operate after midnight.
The chartered flight then had to wait for a landing slot at Medellin airport in Colombia but ran out of fuel before being able to do so. Early reports indicated that the plane had been flying for 20 minutes longer than its official fuel capacity.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments