Mato grosso mid air collision (phantom strikes)
On 29 September 2006, Gol Transportes Aéreos Flight 1907, a Boeing 737-800 on a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Manaus, Brazil, to Brasília and Rio de Janeiro, collided mid-air with an Embraer Legacy 600 business jet flying on an opposite heading over the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso. The winglet of the Legacy sliced off about half of the 737's left wing, causing the 737 to break up and crash into an area of dense jungle, killing all 154 passengers and crew. Despite sustaining serious damage to its left wing and tail, the Legacy landed with its seven occupants uninjured. The crash of Flight 1907 precipitated a major crisis in Brazil's civil aviation system, which included lengthy flight delays and cancellations, ATC work-to-rule slowdowns and strikes, and public-safety concerns about Brazil's airport and air traffic infrastructure.[60]
Historically, Brazil was ruled by its armed forces from 1964 until 1985.[61] Since then, a civilian government has taken over, but the country's airways (as of 2018) continue to be controlled and operated by the Brazilian Air Force (FAB) via their Department of Airspace Control (Portuguese: Departamento de Controle do Espaço Aéreo (DECEA)), overseen by a civilian defense minister.[62][63] Most of Brazil's air traffic controllers are military non-commissioned officers, and all area control centers are run by the FAB. In October 2006, as details surrounding the crash of Flight 1907 began to emerge, the investigation seemed to be at least partly focused on possible ATC errors. This led to increasing resentment by the controllers and exacerbated their already poor labor relations with their military superiors.[65] The controllers complained about being overworked, underpaid, overstressed, and forced to work with outdated equipment. Many have poor English skills, limiting their ability to communicate with foreign pilots, which played a role in the crash of Flight 1907.[1]: 122–126 In addition, the military's complete control of the country's aviation was criticized for its lack of public accountability.[66][67]
Amid rising tensions, the air traffic controllers began staging a series of work actions, including slowdowns, walkouts, and even a hunger strike. This led to chaos in Brazil's aviation industry- major delays and disruptions in domestic and international air service, stranded passengers, cancelled flights, and public demonstrations. Those who blamed various civilian and military officials for the growing crisis called for their resignations.[66]
On 26 July 2007, following even deadlier crash on 17 July (TAM Airlines Flight 3054) that killed 199 people, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva fired his defense minister, Waldir Pires, who had been in charge of the country's aviation infrastructure and safety since March 2006, and was widely criticized for their failures.[68] On the same day, Lula appointed former Supreme Court president Nelson Jobim to replace Pires, and vowed to improve Brazil's ATC system.