Moment plane crashes into building in Brazil city centre killing two people

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This is the moment a small plane crashed into a building in the middle of a packed Brazilian city.

The aircraft was carrying five occupants when it slammed into a building in Belo Horizonte, the country’s sixth-largest city with a population of around 2.4 million people.

The small jet was spotted on video circling the Silveira area before colliding with a low-rise building.

The ⁠pilot and a passenger died, while the remaining passengers were in serious condition.

This handout picture released by the Minas Gerais Fire Department shows a small plane after it crashed into a building in the city center of Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, on May 4, 2026. (Photo by Handout / MINAS GERASIS FIRE DEPARTMENT / AFP via Getty Images) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO /Minas Gerais Fire Department" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS
This picture released by the Minas Gerais Fire Department shows a small plane after it crashed into a building in the city center of Belo Horizonte (Picture: / MINAS GERASIS FIRE DEPARTMENT / AFP via Getty Images)

There were no injuries reported from inside the building.

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The plane took off from Pampulha Airport at 12.16pm and the pilot had reported to the control tower that he was facing problems taking off.

Lieutenant Raul of the Fire Department said: ‘It [the aircraft] hit between the third and fourth floors, in the stairwell.

‘If it had hit the sides, it could have struck some residences; those apartments were occupied.

‘What we saw was the structure of the aircraft projected inside the stairwell, without hitting any other apartments.’

One resident inside the block said she thought ‘the world had ended’.

Avani Soares, told Globo: ‘Everything went dark, a lot of debris fell, and I thought, ‘The world has ended.’

Firefighters inspect the area of the wreckage of a small plane that crashed into a building in downtown Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais state, Brazil, on May 4, 2026. A small plane crashed into the side of a building in the southeastern city of Belo Horizonte on May 4, killing the pilot and copilot, firefighters said. (Photo by GLEDSTON TAVARES / AFP via Getty Images)
There were no injuries inside the building (Picture: GLEDSTON TAVARES / AFP via Getty Images)

‘On the other floor, there were people screaming for help. I didn’t know what to do.’

She said there was a strong smell of fuel as she ran out with just her phone and glasses.

Investigators from the Centre for Investigation and Prevention of Aeronautical Accidents (CENIPA) will examine the incident, according to the Brazilian Air Force (FAB).

The Civil Police from Minas Gerais (PCMG) have also launched an investigation into the crash.

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