German Investigation into VP’s Plane Crash Nears Conclusion

By Priscilla Phiri

August 27, Lilongwe, Mana: Minister of Information and Digitalisation Moses Kunkuyu, who is also the government’s Chief Spokesperson says the investigation into the tragic plane crash that claimed the life of Malawi’s Vice President, late Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima and eight others is still ongoing.

The Minister said this in a press statement released on Tuesday, August 27, 2024 highlighting that the crash, which occurred on June 10, 2024, has been under the scrutiny of Germany’s Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (BFU).

According to the statement, BFU investigators conducted thorough inspections of the crash site, the wreckage, and the aerodromes of both the departure and destination airports in the immediate aftermath of the wreckage.

The statement has also revealed that the Investigators also examined the aircraft’s home base in Zomba and interviewed various officials within the aviation authority and later provided a verbal briefing to both the bereaved family and the government, detailing their initial findings.

“This verbal briefing is what some are mistakenly referring to as a report, but no report was submitted, it was merely a verbal briefing to inform the bereaved families and the government that the Bureau had recovered a Global Positioning System from the wreckage, and that they were taking the GPS back to their lab for comprehensive analysis.” Stated Kunkuyu in the statement.

The statement has also elaborated that BFU published the contents of this briefing on their website on July 11, 2024 emphasizing that a full report would be released once their laboratory analysis is complete.

“The Bureau has communicated to the government that it will publish this interim report on its website this Friday, August 30, 2024, as such, as the President said in his interview with DW, Government will alert the public as soon as the Bureau informs the relevant Government offices that the report has been published,” reads the statement.

Additionally, a separate investigation focusing on the circumstances of the passengers’ deaths was conducted by a laboratory in Blantyre at the request of the bereaved family of which the final autopsy report from this investigation was released to the family in June 2024.

“Government is hopeful that the bereaved family will also release this autopsy report to the public at the earliest convenience should they deem it necessary,” says the statement.

Kunkuyu further reiterated in the statement government’s commitment to transparency and keeping the public informed as new information becomes available.

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