BRAZIL: Minute's silence observed for 155 victims of last week's Gol plane crash

Brazil's main airports paused on Thursday (October 5) to observe a minute's silence in honour of the victims of Airline Gol flight 1907 that crashed with a smaller business jet in the Amazon region. All 155 people on board the commercial airliner were killed in the accident last week. The 67 airports administered by Infraero were scheduled to observe the tribute to those who perished in the accident. In Rio de Janeiro airport, the minute's silence was respected by passengers and crew members of all the other airlines as well. Brazilian authorities believe two pilots may have shut off the transponder in their business jet, rendering its anti-collision system useless, before crossing paths with the commercial airliner. The transponder is a key component of each plane's anti-collision system. Passenger Denis Munhoes, who was in Gol's check-in line, said that the tribute was important. "It's a tribute to the victims. Nothing will bring them back, but at least the guilty must respond (in the legal system)," Munhoes said. Another passenger, Olinda de Jesus said, "It's important to remember the victims, but the accident could have been avoided." At the crash site in a dense, remote area in the rainforest, salvage crews had recovered the remains of about 50 victims by Tuesday (October 3), including the airliner's two pilots.

ITN Source | October 6, 2006

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