Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister, Jenfan Muswere, said that the helicopter that crashed on Sunday in Masvingo experienced a technical fault.
The aircraft, a Mil Mi-8 helicopter, was taking off from Masvingo Airport just after 3 PM on a short flight to Bikita to pick up President Emmerson Mnangagwa when it crashed.
In a statement on Monday, 16 September, Muswere said the incident occurred after a successful ground-breaking ceremony of the Munhumutapa National Youth Housing Programme and the Munhumutapa Day celebrations attended by President Mnangagwa.
He said President Mnangagwa was accompanied by First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa, Vice President Kembo Mohadi, ZANU PF chairperson and Minister of Defence Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri and other senior Government and party officials.
Muswere said the helicopter was intended to transport President Mnangagwa, but he was not aboard at the time of the crash. Said Muswere:
<blockquote>
The helicopter which was supposed to fly the president crash landed after experiencing a technical fault, but the president was not on board. The helicopter only had crew members on board, and there were no fatalities.
</blockquote>
Muswere said the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe (CAAZ) is carrying out investigations and a statement will be issued in due course.
More: <a href="https://www.pindula.co.zw/">Pindula News</a>

Pindula News

A helicopter crashed in Masvingo because of a technical problem. The crash happened after an event attended by President Mnangagwa and other important people. The President was supposed to be on the helicopter, but he wasn't. Luckily, no one was hurt. Investigators are looking into what happened. They will share more information soon.

"Technical Fault Led To Helicopter Crash In Masvingo"

Kenya’s highest-ranking military officer, Gen Francis Omondi Ogolla, died on Thursday, 18 April, after a military helicopter crashed in the west of the country.
As reported by <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-68846778">BBC</a>, Ogolla was in the helicopter alongside 11 other military personnel. Only two people survived.
Kenyan President William Ruto convened an urgent security council meeting following the fatal helicopter crash.
In a news conference later, President Ruto said it was a “moment of great sadness” for the country.
He said the crash happened at 2:20 PM (local time) in Elgeyo Marakwet county, some 400km (250 miles) north-west of the capital Nairobi, shortly after take off. The Kenyan Air Force dispatched an air investigation team to establish the cause. He said:
<blockquote>
Our motherland has lost one of her most valiant generals, gallant officers, service men and women.
</blockquote>
Kenya will observe three days of mourning, commencing on this Friday, with flags flying at half-mast.
Ogolla was appointed Kenya’s military chief in April 2023 after serving as the commander of the air force and deputy chief of defence forces.
According to the Kenyan Defence Ministry’s website, Ogolla first joined the Kenya Defence Forces on 24 April 1984.
He was due to mark 40 years in the military next week.
The Ministry says Ogolla began his career as a 2nd lieutenant in the country’s air force, where he trained as a fighter pilot with the US Air Force. In 2018, he became commander of the air force.
The other nine who perished in the crash were named as Brig Swale Saidi, Col Duncan Keittany, Lt Col David Sawe, Maj George Benson Magondu, Capt Sora Mohamed, Capt Hillary Litali, Snr Sgt John Kinyua Mureithi, Sgt Cliphonce Omondi, and Sgt Rose Nyawira.
The two survivors were said to be in critical condition and undergoing treatment.
The officers had travelled to Kenya’s North Rift region, where armed bandits have been active in recent years.
They were on a mission to reopen some of the schools closed following attacks by insurgents. They had also visited military officers deployed to stabilise the region.
More: <a href="https://www.pindula.co.zw/">Pindula News</a>

Kenya's Military Chief Dies In Helicopter Crash

An Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ) SF260 trainer aircraft, crashed in the Mlezu College general area near Gweru, killing two pilots onboard, <a href="https://www.herald.co.zw/afz-trainer-aircraft-crashes-kills-2-pilots/">reported The Herald</a>.
The aircraft was on a routine training sortie when it hit a power line and crashed, killing the two pilots.
AFZ said the names of the deceased will be released after their next of kin have been notified.
In a message after the accident, Commander AFZ, Air Marshal Elson Moyo, said:
<blockquote>
We have learnt with heavy hearts, of the passing on of two of our pilots after a training accident. Right now, our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the deceased pilots.
I want to extend my deepest condolences to the families and friends of the deceased for this sad loss of AFZ pilots who were on duty and playing their part to ensure that the AFZ fulfills its mandate to defend Zimbabwe’s airspace and territorial integrity.
</blockquote>
In April 2021, an AFZ Agusta Bell 412 (AB 412) helicopter crashed in Goromonzi and killed two pilots, Wing Commander Tinashe Thomas Manyowa and Flight-Lieutenant Annita Mapiye, as well as Flight Sergeant Chikamhi, a technician.
The helicopter crashed into a house at Plot 2 of Gardner Road, Ward 16 in Goromonzi, Mashonaland East.

AFZ Trainer Aircraft Crashes In Gweru, Kills 2 Pilots

Ukraine’s interior minister Denys Monastyrskyy and other top officials were killed when a helicopter crashed near a nursery in Brovary, outside Kyiv.
The helicopter came down on Wednesday, 18 January near a nursery outside the capital, Kyiv, according to emergency services.
At least 14 people, including Monastyrskyy, his deputy Yevhen Yenin and State Secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs Yurii Lubkovych and one child were killed in the crash.
It was not immediately clear what caused the helicopter to crash in the town of Brovary.
The State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SESU) said in its latest update the death toll at 3 PM local time (1 PM GMT) stood at 14, including one child.
Dozens of people, including children, were wounded.
Deputy head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko, said the helicopter was going to one of the “hot spots” of the war with Russia.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called the crash “a terrible tragedy”.
Reporting for Al Jazeera from Kyiv, Natacha Butler said the deaths were a “huge blow” for the country “on a government level”. She said:
<blockquote>
This is Ukraine’s interior minister, one of the highest posts in the country; his deputy.
These are key figures in Ukraine’s government at a time when the government is at war with Russia, so this will be a huge blow to the country no doubt.
You can only imagine some of the conversations happening right now, in Kyiv in those government circles as to what’s going to happen next.
</blockquote>
Monastyrskyy (42), responsible for the police and security inside Ukraine, is the most senior Ukrainian official to die since the war began.
He was a trained lawyer and had served as Ukraine’s interior minister since July 2021.
Monastyrskyy was a key member of Zelenskyy’s party Servant of the People and was married, with two children. | <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/1/18/ukraine-interior-minister-others-killed-in-helicopter-crash">Al Jazeera</a>

Ukraine Interior Minister Denys Monastyrskyy Among 14 killed In Helicopter Crash

An Air Force of Zimbabwe (AFZ) helicopter crash-landed near oil expresser Surface Wilmar in Chitungwiza on Thursday evening, but details of the accident have been kept under wraps.
NewsDay reports that the chopper reportedly made a sudden U-turn just after crossing Chitungwiza Road into Unit J, and tried to land safely at a nearby aerodrome, but crashed before it could do so.

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A witness, Tendai Sauta, said other helicopters immediately flew to the scene to provide rescue operations.
Details of fatalities or casualties were still sketchy at the time of going to print last night. Sauta said:
<blockquote>_A helicopter has crashed in Sunrise suburb near Surface._
_I saw the helicopter from a distance swinging and thought it was a drill. Eventually, it crashed. In a short space of time, three helicopters came and landed to rescue. I could not visit the scene for fear of being arrested for violating COVID-19 curfew._</blockquote>
Another witness who refused to be named echoed Sauta’s remarks adding that soldiers were chasing people from the scene. Added the witness:
<blockquote>_The helicopter partially crashed around Unit J in the late hours of yesterday (Thursday) after developing a fault._
_Its pilot probably made a decision to fly the mini army plane back to the aerodrome in the dumpsite area, but unfortunately, the plane crashed before landing._</blockquote>
The remains were towed away on Friday by an army truck under a heavy police escort.
Thursday’s crash comes barely three months after another AFZ helicopter, an Agusta Bell 412, crashed on April 23, killing four people on the spot.
More: <a href="https://www.newsday.co.zw/2021/07/another-afz-chopper-crashes/">NewsDay</a>

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