Real Transportes Aéreos Flight 435

Investigation

Despite the investigators' efforts, the cause of the accident was never discovered. Only a portion of the aircraft's wreckage was recovered; additionally, the aircraft was not equipped with flight recorders or black boxes, items that existed only on jet aircraft of that era.

The following hypotheses were proposed to explain the accident:

Explosion on board (dismissed after examining the wreckage);

Accidental opening of the rear right door during the flight, which, torn off by the wind, hit the right engine (dismissed after the door was found with its locks intact);

Damage caused by an unknown agent (bird strike, engine defect, etc.) to the right engine found without the front part and its propeller (dismissed due to the inability to determine if the lack of part of the engine and propeller was a result of impact over the waters of Baía de Guanabara or problems with the respective engine);

The plane crashed on Ilha dos Ferros, scattering wreckage across the island and into the sea, with searches for the wreckage continuing until July 6. Some wreckage was found in the region of Ilha de Paquetá. The accident contributed to the decline of Real Transportes Aéreos, which was acquired by Varig the following year. The accident also prompted the creation of a Parliamentary Inquiry Commission by the Chamber of Deputies, aimed at investigating the causes of the high number of aviation accidents in the country at that time. The CPI was chaired by Congressman Miguel Antônio Bahury, whose wife, Maria, had died in the crash of REAL Flight 435. Ironically, Congressman Bahury also died about 3 years later in the crash of Serviços Aéreos Cruzeiro do Sul Flight 144, operated by another Convair 340, near the São Paulo–Congonhas Airport.