Neymar partner helicopter vanishes with 5 in Santa Catarina

The Brazilian Air Force initiated an urgent search and rescue mission on the 21st across the mountainous terrain of Santa Catarina to locate a vanished helicopter transporting five occupants, including singer Rick and corporate entrepreneur Bruno Avelar. The private aircraft departed from the coastal municipality of Porto Belo with a scheduled destination in the highland city of São Joaquim, but all communication ceased abruptly during the flight. Aviation authorities quickly mobilized specialized squadrons to coordinate low-altitude sweeps across the elevated ridges.

Rescue crews assembled in Urubici.

Air Force directs specialized aircraft to mountain ridges

The Aeronautical Rescue Coordination Center of Curitiba assumed tactical control of the mission after the Department of Airspace Control issued an emergency alert regarding the sudden disappearance of the flight from tracking monitors. Military commanders dispatched an H-60 Black Hawk helicopter and an SC-105 Amazonas search aircraft to conduct systematic aerial operations across the dense forests and treacherous valleys situated between Urubici and São Joaquim.

Military aviators established overlapping grid patterns over steep granite slopes and heavily wooded ridges to detect physical signs of the fuselage. The military deployed these specific airframes because their sophisticated onboard sensor suites, extended fuel reserves, and specialized radar equipment permit uninterrupted visual sweeps across dense mountain ridges and rocky ravines during shifting daylight intervals and adverse regional weather conditions. Mission controllers analyze radar data continuously from regional observation centers to refine flight corridors for the pilots. Ground teams coordinate with the aircraft.

Firefighters deploy four-wheel vehicles along rural paths

The Santa Catarina Military Fire Brigade deployed a specialized detachment of 20 rescue personnel equipped with four-wheel-drive utility trucks to traverse the slippery dirt roads and steep muddy grades of the highland district. The state fire department established two separate operational staging bases approximately 30 kilometers apart, aligning their primary search perimeters with the last known cellular telephone transmission received from an occupant onboard.

A municipal rescue squad from Urubici drove emergency vehicles directly to the rural community of Vacas Gordas after local residents reported a suspected crash impact in the vicinity. Responders inspected the surrounding farmlands thoroughly but found no mechanical wreckage, fire remnants, or structural debris from the missing airframe. The search coordination center subsequently redirected the ground convoy toward coordinates logged by telecommunication antennas near São Joaquim.

Commanders prepared a specialized search and rescue canine handler to reinforce ground tracking efforts starting on the morning of the 22nd if current patrols do not discover the aircraft. Tactical teams continue advancing through steep ravines and damp forest paths relying on geographic coordinates updated continuously by military flight controllers.

Passenger identity and corporate aircraft records

The flight took off at approximately 10:30 am from the Costa Esmeralda airfield located on the northern coastline of Santa Catarina. A total of five people traveled inside the cabin during the scheduled transit toward the southern mountain plateau. Official flight manifests confirmed the identities of the occupants aboard the private aircraft:

• Country music singer Rick from the musical duo Rick and Renner
• Business strategist Bruno Avelar from regional corporate projects
• One civilian guest traveling alongside the primary passengers
• Two certified flight professionals serving as pilot and copilot

Regional controllers logged normal engine parameters during departure before the aircraft vanished completely from civil tracking screens.

The missing helicopter bears tail number PPMGR and displays the corporate emblem of development firm JTA Empreendimentos e Urbanismo, a construction entity that operates commercial partnerships with Ecossistema Neymar Jr. along the coastline. Business mentor Bruno Avelar conducts high-level corporate training programs and maintains direct business ties with executive enterprises led by Neymar Jr. throughout the state.

Flight crew members transmitted their final radio message while cruising through controlled airspace directly above state highway SC-370. Rural residents living along the mountain pass reported observing the helicopter flying at an unusually low altitude shortly before it dropped off military tracking displays. Air traffic monitoring facilities recorded an immediate and simultaneous cutoff of both two-way radio contact and automated transponder signals.

Ground searchers maintain stationary observation checkpoints along unpaved access roads near the state highway to track passing operational vehicles. Fire service crews rotate supply transport trucks through regional municipal depots.