The harrowing true story behind A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054 on Netflix, explained

A month after releasing a trailer and release date for A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054, Netflix is set to premiere the docuseries tomorrow, April 23, 2025. The three-episode docuseries revisits the tragic accident that happened in São Paulo, Brazil, on July 17, 2007, when an airplane coming from Porto Alegre overshot the runway.

When the aircraft made touchdown at the Congonhas Airport in São Paulo, it crossed a roadway and crashed into a building, resulting in the loss of 199 lives. The accident sparked an important debate about aviation safety in Brazil.

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What is the true story behind A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054 on Netflix?

The TAM Airlines Flight 3054 was a regularly operating domestic passenger flight by TAM Airlines that flew from Porto Alegre to São Paulo, Brazil. However, a tragic accident occurred on the evening of July 17, 2007, when the Airbus A320-233 coming from Porto Algre overran runway 35L at São Paulo after making touchdown.

It was raining moderately that evening, and the flight skidded and crashed into a nearby TAM Express warehouse that was just adjacent to a Shell gas station. The impact caused the aircraft to explode, which killed all 187 passengers and crew on board. Moreover, 12 people on the ground were also killed, along with 27 people in the warehouse, severely injured.

The accident is infamous as one of the deadliest aviation accidents in Brazilian territory and in South American history involving the Airbus A320 series until the bombing of Metrojet Flight 9268 in 2015, where the death toll was estimated to be 224.

The accident was investigated by the Aeronautical Accidents Investigation and Prevention Center of the Brazilian Air Force, and a final report on it was released in September 2009. It was concluded that the accident was caused by pilot error during the landing at São Paulo.

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Everything we know about A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054 on Netflix?

Netflix is releasing a three-episode documentary series on the TAM Airlines Flight 3054 accident tomorrow, titled A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054. The series investigates in great detail the incidents of the accident, focusing on every failure in the chain of events that eventually led to the disaster.

It also explores in detail the changes in the field of Brazilian aviation that were made in the aftermath of the accident. The docuseries also provides a sympathetic account of the devastating impact that the accident had on the families of the victims.

Netflix released a trailer along with a premiere date for A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054 last month. The trailer can be watched below.

The trailer for the docuseries gives a glimpse of the chain of events that A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054 explores in connection with the accident of TAM Airlines Flight 3054 in July 2007.

The official synopsis of A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054 by Netflix reads as follows:

"This documentary series takes an in-depth look at the aftermath of the 2007 accident at Congonhas Airport in São Paulo. The disaster, which claimed 199 lives, left a lasting impact on Brazilian aviation history."

The docuseries has been produced by Pródigo Filmes in collaboration with Sobretudo Produção and has been created by Angelo Defanti, who also directed all three episodes of the series. A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054 is written by Defanti alongside Fábio Leal. Executive producers on the show are Beto Gauss, Francesco Civita, Bárbara Defanti, and Renata Grynszpan.

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Catch A Tragedy Foretold: Flight 3054, which premieres tomorrow, April 23, 2025, on Netflix exclusively.