United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Kinshasa)
Eoin Young
15 April 2008
A Hewa Bora Airways DC-9 passenger plane carrying up to an estimated 80 passengers and six crew members crashed into the Birere suburb of Goma in North Kivu province on the afternoon of Tuesday 15 April 2008, and according to unconfirmed reports only six survivors have been found so far.
The authorities have no information on the number of casualties in the densely populated Birere suburb, where according to Radio Okapi the plane reached an altitude of 100 metres before crash landing, after experiencing technical difficulties during takeoff.
Upon crashing the plane burst into flames, and United Nations peacekeepers, fire brigades and medical staff arrived at the scene to assist the local authorities.
It is understood that the plane took off at approximately 2.45pm, and was on its way to Kinshasa via Kisangani.
On Friday 11 April 2008, the European Union added Hewa Bora Airways to its blacklist of airlines banned from flying into their airspace, as the airline did not comply with minimum EU safety standards.
The McDonnell Douglas DC-9 is a twin-engine, single-aisle passenger jet that first went into service in 1965, and usually seats between 80 and 135 passengers, depending on the configuration.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
