The dreams of the Brazilian Chapecoense Soccer Team crashed to the ground. The plane crash killed 71 people including members on the soccer team, journalists, and crew members. There were not many survivors, as 3 players, 1 journalist, and 2 crew members survived. The team was on the way to Medellin for the Copa Sudamericana finals.

Nobody knows why the plane crashed. Many theories have been coming up such as the plane running out of fuel. This theory has not been proved, since it was just 5 miles away from the airport. So then, The Colombian Civil Aviation Authority did an investigation and it led to an electrical problem with the plane. There was no fire when the plane hit the ground hard though, which is a reason why there are some survivors. Fuel starvation is another possibility too, and this happens when fuel is cut off from the engine which causes the plane to stop running. This can be cause by a gasoline leak, internal icing, crew/human error, or when the fuel pumps or gauges fail.

Investigators have started putting together the flight’s hours by using data from the flight data and voice recorder, and the records of the maintenance and manufacturing. The black boxes were found in “excellent condition” on Tuesday, November 29th according to Colombian aviation officials. This charter flight departed from the Viru Viru International Airport on Santa Cruz, Bolivia at 6:18 PM local time according to Manuel Palamas, an air controller. At around 20,000 feet, the plane was making a circular shaped path shortly before it crashed according to the tracking data from FlightRadar 24.

Unfortunately, one of the soccer players dead in the incident just found out that he was going to be a dad a week before the crash. Soccer player Tiago da Rocha Viera Alves was surfaced in a video on social media that showed his teammates giving the news to the player that he was going to be a dad. The video then shows him celebrating and embracing his teammates, then rocking his arms back and forth like he was cradling a baby.

Even the opponents of the Chapecoense soccer team felt sad for the tragedy, urging South America’s soccer governing body to give the Copa Sudamericana title to the Chapecoense soccer team. In a statement on it’s website, the sportsmanlike team said that it wants the title to go to their opponents as an “honorary laureate/prize for its massive loss. The trophy should be a homage to all the victims of the fatal accident which throws our sports into mourning. For our part and forever, they will be the Chapecoense Champions of the Copa Sudamericana 2016.

This is such an unfortunate and sad situation for soccer. When dreams crash to the ground, that is the worst thing ever. Especially if it is a plane crash and you lose many of your teammates.

Credits

http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/29/football/chapecoense-crash-colombia-atletico-nacional/index.html from CNN. Maintained by CNN. By James Masters. Accessed on 11/30/16.

http://www.cnn.com/2016/11/29/americas/colombia-plane-crash-investigation/index.html from CNN. Maintained by CNN. By Jon Ostrower. Accessed on 11/30/16.