6-8-2023 (BRASILIA) A disturbing video has emerged on social media, revealing a Brazilian rancher drinking beer while his 11-year-old son was at the controls of his private plane. Tragically, both the father and son lost their lives when the aircraft, a US$1.2 million twin-engine Beechcraft Baron 58, crashed on July 29 in a forest between the states of Rondonia and Mato Grosso, Brazil.
The aftermath of the fatal crash took an even darker turn when the grief-stricken wife of the rancher, Ms Ana Pridonik, ended her own life with a firearm just hours after her husband and stepson’s burial on August 1.
Investigators are now faced with the difficult task of determining how much the father’s reckless actions, captured in the video, contributed to the tragic accident.
The exact date when the video was recorded remains unclear, but investigators have remarked that it reflects Mr Garon Maia’s apparent disregard for safety—both his own and his son’s.
In the footage, young Francisco can be seen in the pilot’s seat as the plane takes off from a dirt runway, with Mr Maia in the co-pilot’s seat providing instructions.
“Wait, everything ready? Nothing in front, okay. Come on, 600 horses, you can push. 600, Kiko, go,” Mr Maia can be heard instructing his son.
“Hand on the lever, hand on the lever. Keep your hand there and look at the speed,” he says as the plane ascends into the sky.
Shockingly, moments later, with the plane in cruise mode, Mr Maia is seen consuming a bottle of beer.
“The passenger can have one. Right, Kiko?” he nonchalantly remarks.
Crash investigators reported that on the day of the tragedy, Mr Maia departed from his ranch in Nova Conquista and made a stop at an airport in Vilhena to refuel. His plan was to fly Francisco back to Campo Grande, Mato Grosso do Sul, where the boy lived with his mother and attended school, according to Daily Mail.
The plane took off at 5:50 pm, but tragically plummeted eight minutes later, crashing very close to the ploughed land.
“The plane crashed very close to the ploughed land. He didn’t have time to land,” one witness stated to the news.
Now, investigators are faced with the daunting task of determining whether the young boy was at the controls when the fatal crash occurred.
O pecuarista Garon Maia e seu filho morreram em um acidente aéreo em Rondônia. Um vÃdeo divulgado pelo pecuarista mostra seu filho de 12 anos decolando um bimotor Beechcraft Baron 58 enquanto ele bebe cerveja e orienta o garoto na decolagem.
— Flávio Costa (@flaviocostaaf) July 31, 2023
