Lula lands in Brasília after plane issue in Mexico
After a delay due to aircraft problems, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva landed in Brasília on Wednesday (Oct. 2) from his trip to Mexico, where he attended the inauguration ceremony of the country’s new president, Claudia Sheinbaum. The plane carrying his entourage landed at 10:12 am at Brasília Air Base. “The flight was smooth and without any complications,” the president’s office reported.
President Lula went straight to his official residence, the Alvorada Palace, and has no official appointments planned for today.
The issues
Boarding at Felipe Ángeles International Airport in Mexico City took place at 2:10 pm local time (5:10 pm in Brasília). After take-off, the Brazilian Air Force VC-1 aircraft presented a technical problem and was forced to return to the Mexican airport. Without detailing the incident, the Air Force said that safety procedures had been adopted and the pilots were waiting for the necessary fuel to be consumed before the plane could return to the airport in the Mexican capital.
After five hours in the air, the president and his entourage landed safely at 10:16 pm in Mexico City. At dawn on Wednesday, they all boarded another Air Force aircraft bound for Brasília.
The Air Force has not yet announced the cause of the technical problem with the presidential aircraft, an Airbus A329CJ.
In Mexico, in addition to Sheinbaum's swearing-in ceremony, President Lula had a bilateral meeting with the new president and took part in a forum with Brazilian and Mexican investors.
