The U.S. aircraft register, updated daily
Accidents · NTSB ERA16WA025 · Preliminary: the investigation is not finished

Piper PA-28R-200 accident near Brazil, Br, October 6, 2015

On October 6, 2015 at about 2:33 pm local time, a Piper PA-28R-200, registered PTNKU, was destroyed in an accident during enroute (cruise) near Brazil. It was a flight of an unrecorded kind under non-U.S. private rules. 2 people were killed.

The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged

The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
October 6, 2015 · about 2:33 pm local time
Place
Brazil, Brazil
Type
Accident
Injuries
2 people were killed.
Weather
not recorded
Aircraft
Piper PA-28R-200 · all PA-28R-200s on the register
Registration
PTNKU · no longer on the register · serial 711128
Damage
Destroyed
Flight
Flight of an unrecorded kind · non-U.S. private rules

The NTSB's narrative preliminary · quoted from the NTSB record

On October 6, 2015, about 1433 UTC, A Piper PA-28R-200 (Embraer EMB711C); Brazilian registration PT-NKU, was destroyed when it impacted terrain while flying from Caratinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil to Serra do Caraca, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The two occupants were fatally injured. This accident investigation is under the jurisdiction of the Government of Brazil. Any further information pertaining to this may be obtained from: Aeronautical Accident Prevention and Investigation Center Investigation Division CENIPA SHIS - QI 05-VI Comar Brasilia-DF, Brazil 71.615-600 Telephone: (55-61) 3364-8800 Fax: (55-61) 3365-1004 dipaa.spai@cenipa.aer.mil.br This report is for information purposes and contains only information released by the Government of Brazil.

The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.

The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English

What happened, in order

  1. Controlled flight into terrain or object (CFIT) during enroute (cruise) defining event

Pilot

  • Injury: fatal

The aircraft

  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Not recorded

The flight

  • Departed from: SNCT Catas Altas
  • Destination: SNPA Para De Minas

Weather at the time

  • Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Flight crew1
Passengers1

Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report

The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.

Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.