A country singer and a businessman close to football superstar Neymar have been killed in a horror helicopter crash.
Rick Sollo, 59, of Brazilian duo Rick & Renner, and entrepreneur Bruno Avelar, 41, were among five people who died after the aircraft plunged into mountainous terrain.
Firefighters discovered the wreckage on Tuesday (20 September) after the helicopter vanished the previous day (21 September).
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There were no survivors, as reported by Need To Know.
The Bell 430, registration PP-MGR, had taken off from Porto Belo on Brazil’s southern coast and was heading to São Joaquim.
Avelar, a networking coach and influencer from Belo Horizonte, had hosted charity auctions for the Instituto Projeto Neymar Jr and helped Neymar following the footballer’s return to Santos.
Paying tribute, Neymar wrote: “When I was able to return to Brazil, you helped me so much.
“Thank you. Rest in peace.
“May God comfort all the families and friends of those who have gone.”
Also killed were videomaker Paulo Soares, pilot Antônio Roberto Nóbrega de Araújo and co-pilot Leopoldo Barros Teixeira.
Avelar and Rick had reportedly flown into Porto Belo on a light aircraft from Jundiaí that morning.
They then boarded the helicopter to travel to a lunch meeting with the mayor of São Joaquim at a local vineyard.
Storms, fog and high winds had been forecast across the mountain range.
Contact with the helicopter was lost after midday, sparking a major search operation involving around 40 firefighters, sniffer dogs, thermal drones and a Brazilian Air Force aircraft.
Crews worked through the night before the wreckage was discovered at around noon on Tuesday.
It was found in thick forest at Santa Bárbara, near Urubici, at an altitude of up to 5,500ft.
Lieutenant Colonel Heloísa Batista, of Santa Catarina’s fire service, said the helicopter had not exploded and no mayday call had been logged.
Lieutenant Colonel Miguel Lis Bruno, of the Air Force Pelican Squadron, said: “It was mountainous terrain plus bad weather.
“It demanded tight planning at the scene.”
Rescuers spent more than five hours on the slope before the victims’ bodies were airlifted from the scene on Tuesday afternoon.
They were taken to the forensic institute in Florianópolis at around 6pm.
Air accident investigators from CENIPA have begun examining the wreckage and flight data, while civil police have opened a parallel investigation.
JTA Empreendimentos, which owns the helicopter, said it had been loaned to “great friends” Avelar and Rick.
The fuselage carried an NJR marking linked to JTA’s work on the Neymar Jr complex in Porto Belo.
The owner stressed that the helicopter did not belong to Neymar or his family.
Avelar’s team said: “It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of businessman Bruno Avelar.
“More than his professional work, Bruno leaves his mark on the people who walked with him, the projects he dreamed up and the relationships he built.”
Avelar had married journalist Lívia around a month before his death and leaves behind two sons, Kai and Kevin.
During the desperate search, Lívia had posted: “We will move heaven and earth until we find you.”
Rick’s singing partner Renner also wrote while the aircraft was missing: “We are living anguish and uncertainty.
“Let’s keep faith and hope.”
Rick’s business partner Olívio Beltrão Júnior had reportedly been invited on the same trip but travelled by car instead.
Funeral details have not yet been released.
The investigation into the crash continues.
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