The military Dornier 228 aircraft registered MAF-T03 carrying Malawi’s Vice-President Saulos Klaus Chilima and nine others crashed in a forest, killing all on board. It was on a domestic flight to attend the burial of a former government minister.
The aircraft disappeared from airport radars on Monday morning (10 June), leading to an extensive search operation by soldiers in the Chikangawa Forest overnight and into the following morning.
President Lazarus Chakwera confirmed on 11 June in the morning that the plane was found with no survivors. The wreckage was destroyed except for the tail section, and there were no survivors.
The flight took off from the capital, Lilongwe (LLW), and was supposed to land in Mzuzu (ZZU) but was turned back due to poor visibility caused by bad weather.
The military is transporting the remains of Dr. Chilima and other victims to Lilongwe.
