Negligence or accident? Probe begins after planes’ mid-air collision kills two
Security officers at Nairobi National Park crash scene where a Cessna Plane run by Ninety-Nines Flying School crashed after it collided with Safari link plane on March 5, 2024.
Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) experts were Tuesday pulling all stops to unravel the cause of the mid-air collision of two airplanes near Wilson Airport.
KCAA insiders said that the authority would be conducting a comprehensive analysis of the voice recorder and piece together everything from the moment the two planes took to the skies before they issue a report.
The accident which involved a Diani-bound aircraft and another belonging to a flight school, claimed two lives.
Part of the mystery to be resolved is to find out why the planes were flying so close to each other and whether the pilots were following standard practice.
Aviation experts told the Nation on Tuesday that the pilots of the two planes either ignored air traffic control instructions or did not receive them in time.
Aviation accidents are a rare phenomenon, said Captain Nick Ng'ethe, who runs Samanthair Simulator Flight Training, adding that they are “a really big deal”.
He added that it was unusual to expect trainee pilots to fly around commercial routes. According to Mr Ng’ethe, in normal operations, the captain is always instructed on the height he or she will be flying at above sea level and the same is expected in flight school.
Globally, the primary purpose of air traffic control (ATC) is to prevent collisions, organise and expedite the flow of air traffic, and provide information and other assistance to pilots. ATCs monitor the location of aircraft in their assigned airspace by radar and communicate with pilots by radio. KCAA is responsible for regulating the aviation industry in Kenya and providing air traffic control services.
“The [Wilson] airport has a full-fledged control tower. I can confirm that,” Salim Bakari, head of communications at KCAA, told the Nation.
As the mystery surrounding the accident continues, the Nation has established that the dead were in a Cessna 172, registration 5YNNJ, operated by Ninety Nines Flying School, which collided with a Safarilink aircraft.
All 39 passengers and five crew on board the Safarilink survived the accident. Shortly after take-off, the Dash 8 Safari Link aircraft, registration 5YSLK, reported a mid-air collision with another aircraft and requested to land. Six minutes passed between take-off and return to Wilson.
The airline has not yet released any further information on the condition of the aircraft, its manifest, flight plan or whether the journey of the 39 passengers continued.
“Safarilink Aviation wishes to report that our Diani-bound flight number 053 with 39 passengers and 5 crew on board experienced loud bang shortly after take-off at 9:45 this morning,” the airline said in a statement.
“The crew decided to return to Nairobi Wilson Airport for further inspection and assessment and landed safely.”
The Safarilink CEO refused to speak to journalists and his handlers asked the press to leave the premises. The mangled wreckage of the smaller plane told of the horrific last moments of the flight instructor and trainee, whose identities were yet to be revealed.
The wreckage was still in the Nairobi National Park last evening, with the area cordoned off by police.
