A Congolese military aircraft crashed while attempting an emergency landing in western Democratic Republic of Congo, killing all 13 people on board, including the army’s Inspector General, authorities said.
The aircraft was flying from Kikwit in southwestern Congo to the capital, Kinshasa, when it developed a technical malfunction and attempted to land in Kenge, a town in Kwango Province, officials said. The plane crashed into a residential area after failing to find a suitable runway.
Remy Saki Bukinda, deputy governor of Kwango Province, said 12 of the victims’ bodies were severely burned, making identification difficult, while the pilot’s body was recovered outside the wreckage.
Among those killed was General Likulia Bakumi, Inspector General of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC), along with several military officers and civilians traveling on the flight.
Congolese authorities said the country’s civil aviation accident investigation agency has launched an inquiry into the crash. Officials have not yet released details about the aircraft type or the exact cause of the accident.
The crash comes as the Congolese military continues to face significant operational challenges while battling Rwanda-backed M23 rebels in the country’s eastern provinces. Fighting has displaced millions of people and placed additional pressure on the armed forces’ logistics and transport operations.
Military aviation accidents have occurred repeatedly in the Democratic Republic of Congo over the past decade, highlighting longstanding concerns about aircraft maintenance, aging military equipment, and limited aviation infrastructure in parts of the country.
Authorities said investigators are examining the aircraft’s technical condition, flight data, weather conditions, and communications with air traffic control to determine what caused the fatal crash.
