SAHARANEWS – A tragic incident was averted yesterday January 9, as a South African military aircraft crash landed and caught fire at the Goma airport in eastern Congo.
No casualty was recorded after the C-130BZ military aircraft transporting 59 passengers and eight crew members caught fire upon crash-landing.
Confirming the incident, Mathias Gillman who is the acting spokesperson for the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo known as MONUSCO said 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 newsmen; “MONUSCO sent a rescue team that brought the fire under control and everyone was safely evacuated.”
Also confirming the incident, South Africa’s National Defence Force disclosed that its board of inquiry will be convened to investigate the incident.