A man who entered an airport in Brazil to “test” a helicopter crashed the aircraft while attempting to take off, local media reported.
Sea g1 The incident occurred at Caxambu airport in the south of the state of Minas Gerais. The 33-year-old man entered the runway, climbed into the helicopter and brought the plane down during an attempt to take off before fleeing shortly afterwards.
Nobody was injured. The fire brigade was called to action and only discovered a small fuel leak on site, without any fire or explosion occurring.
According to police, the affected helicopter is a private aircraft that does not belong to a flight school. At the time of the attempted theft, the aircraft was outside the hangar. The man is said to have entered the area after cutting through the airport’s protective fence.
The suspect was arrested at around 3 p.m. local time on Sunday afternoon (8) at his home in São Lourenço, a nearby town near Caxambu, and then taken to the police station.
In his statement to police, the man said he entered the site to “test” the helicopter. He said he had a pilot’s license, but it had expired.
He also told officials that he had already done something similar in California in the United States. At that time he flew the helicopter for a few minutes, landed on a beach and then fled. This statement is currently being verified by the authorities.
During the arrest, a notebook, a cell phone and the clothing the man was wearing at the time of the incident were confiscated to continue the investigation. The Center for the Investigation and Prevention of Aviation Accidents (CENIPA) was called in to monitor the case.
Photos: Military Police / Fire Department. This content was created using AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
