Plane disappeared from radar after failing to land: intense search for Malawi vice-president

L'avion militaire qui transportait le vice-président du Malawi a disparu des radars (photo d'illustration). Ross Parmly – UNSPLASH

Intense searches are underway this Tuesday, June 11, 2024 in Malawi to find the military plane which transported the country's vice-president, and disappeared from radar the day before after failing to land.

"I know this is a heartbreaking situation […] but I want to assure you that “I am not ruling out any means available to find this plane and I am clinging to the hope that we will find survivors”, said President Lazarus Chakwera, in a televised message to the nation Monday June 10, 2024 in the night.

Along with nine other people, the vice-president, Saulos Chilima, 51, took a seat on this plane – which took off on Monday shortly after 9 a.m. local (7 a.m. GMT) from the capital, Lilongwe – to go to the town of Mzuzu, 370 km to the northeast, to attend the funeral of a former government member.

The former First Lady of Malawi, Shanil Dzimbiri (Muluzi), was also on board.

"Poor visibility due to weather"

"Upon arrival at Mzuzu, the pilot was unable to land due to poor visibility due to bad weather , and air authorities advised the plane to return to Lilongwe, but the authorities quickly lost contact with the aircraft, the president said.

The head of state rejected allegations from local media that search operations had been halted after dark.

The soldiers are "still on the ground carrying out the search and I have given strict orders for the operation to continue until’ “until the plane is found”, he said, adding that the army would regularly provide information to the public.

Earlier in the day, he had ordered regional and national forces to conduct an immediate search and rescue operation, according to a government press release.

International aid

The president said he contacted the governments of several countries, including the United States, Britain, Norway and Israel, all of whom offered assistance "in different capacities&quot ;, including the provision "of specialized technologies which will allow the plane to be found more quickly.

A telecommunications signal made it possible to locate the plane within a radius of 10 km around Riaply, a wood grinding company, located south of Mzuzu, he said. he announced.

Excavations on foot in the forest

Monday evening, in this area, soldiers searched on foot and by the light of flashlights the Chikangawa forest, where according to unconfirmed testimonies at this stage, witnesses saw a crash plane, local media reported.

President Chakwera, who was due to leave for a working visit to the Bahamas, canceled his departure.

First elected vice-president in 2014, Mr. Chilima, a charismatic political figure with a tough speech, is very popular in Malawi, particularly among young people.

But in 2022, during his second term, he was suspended from office after being arrested and prosecuted for corruption in the context of a scandal involving a businessman Anglo-Malawite. In May, a Malawi court quashed the charges after several hearings in its presence.