South Africa’s military aircraft carrying UN soldiers crash lands in DR Congo

Tragedy averted as a South African military aircraft crash-landed and caught fire at the Goma airport in eastern Congo on Thursday, January 9.

C-130BZ military aircraft with 59 passengers and eight crew members caught fire upon crash-landing but there was no casualty recorded.

Reacting to the incident, the acting spokesperson for the U.N peacekeeping mission in Congo known as MONUSCO, Mathias Gillman confirmed the incident and further added that the military aircraft was returning from eastern Congo city of Beni, where it was providing logistical support to the South African contingent deployed in the region.

He told AFP, “MONUSCO sent a rescue team that brought the fire under control and everyone was safely evacuated.”

South Africa’s National Defence Force also confirmed the incident and disclosed that its board of inquiry will be convened to investigate the incident.