An Airbus A320 airliner crashed at the Sao Paolo airport in the early hours of Wednesday, the 176 people on board, crew and passengers, most likely dead, Brazilian authorities said.

The death toll could rise further with casualties on the ground, as the jet skidded across a main road before hitting a fuel depot and erupting in flames.

The plane was landing at the end of its flight from Porto Alegre and is believed to have slid off the wet runway.

Heavy rain has raised question marks over the safety of the city's Congonhas airport before, and a judge went as far as to ban any flights in and out of the airport for a brief spell in February.

Brazil has been trying to step up its efforts to increase air safety after last year's clash between a passenger plane and a private jet over the Amazon, killing 154 people in the process in what was the worst air accident in the country at the time.

Earlier in the day, another plane, much smaller, has also slid off its runway as heavy rain pelted South America's biggest city, but no-one was hurt.

Brazilian president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has declared three days of national morning for the victims of the crash.

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