Moremi Air Cessna 208 crash

Moremi Air Cessna 208 Crash
A Cessna 208 Caravan, similar to the plane that crashed
Accident
Date 14 October 2011
Summary Under investigation
Site Xakanaka Airstrip, Botswana
19°12′00″S 23°25′37″E / 19.200°S 23.427°E / -19.200; 23.427Coordinates: 19°12′00″S 23°25′37″E / 19.200°S 23.427°E / -19.200; 23.427
Aircraft
Aircraft type Cessna 208 Caravan
Operator Moremi Air
Registration A2-AKD[1]
Flight origin Xakanaka Airstrip, Botswana
Destination Pom Pom Camp Airstrip, Botswana
Passengers 11
Crew 1 [1]
Fatalities 8 [2]
Injuries 4
Survivors 4

On 14 October 2011, a Moremi Air Cessna 208B Grand Caravan crashed shortly after take-off from Xakanaka Airstrip on a scheduled domestic flight to Pom Pom air-strip, which served a private game reserve 60 miles north of Maun, Botswana.[3]

Aircraft

The plane was a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan, with a single turboprop engine with fixed gear and was designed as a short haul airliner and utility aircraft. The plane involved in the incident had a tail number of A2-AKD, was first flown in 1996,[1] and was able to seat thirteen passengers and one crew member. At the time of the accident only twelve including the pilot were on board.

Crash

The plane took off from Xakanaka Airstrip at 13:55 local time bound ultimately for Maun, but with a stop at the Pom Pom air-strip forty six miles to the west first. The crash happened almost immediately in the initial climbing phase[1] very close to - and facing towards - the runway. Upon crashing, flames engulfed the plane extremely quickly, although it is unclear whether the fire had started before or after impact with the ground. One of the passengers, an official for Botswana’s Department of Road Transport and Safety (DRTS), was able to escape the flames and rescue his colleague and a French couple. Six other passengers and the British pilot were pronounced dead at the scene and another died shortly after the incident.[4] Sue Smart, the CEO of Moremi Air Charters, told reporters that the pilot ‘was the company’s general manager [and] most seasoned pilot with over 12,000 hours of flying.’[5]

Aftermath

Within ten minutes of the crash, other operatives were flying over the site and ground emergency services arrived at the scene within an hour, as well as members of the Botswana Defence Force and Civil Aviation Authority Botswana (CAAB). Due to the severity of the fire, identification of the victims was only possible through DNA testing.[4] A full investigation into the crash was initiated with EFATO (Engine Failure After Take-Off) being considered as a likely cause. The head of the Aviation Law department of Stewarts Law LLP, James Healy-Pratt, cast doubt on such a verdict, stating that it is unusual for experienced pilots to attempt to return to the air strip in the event of EFAT.[6] Other theories included possible overloading of the plane; given that the plane was not full to capacity and that the two officials of DRTS were only on the plane to assess the vehicles run by Moremi Air[4] and not tourists with large amounts of luggage this also seems unlikely. A bird strike or, according to solicitors working on the incident, 'some other form of in-flight catastrophic failure' were also plausible explanations for the crash.[7] Media initially reported four Swedish nationals as casualties, which in reality were from Switzerland. [8]

Investigation

The Ministry of Transport and Communications is to conduct the investigation.[9]

As of July 2012 the investigation was ongoing.

Victims

NationalityPassengersCrewFatalitiesTotal
 France4022
 United Kingdom1122
  Switzerland4044
 Botswana2000
Total11188

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Accident Description". Aviation Safety Network. 14 October 2011. Archived from the original on 2012-07-02. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
  2. ↑ "Botswana air crash kills European tourists". BBC. 17 October 2011. Archived from the original on 2012-01-07. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
  3. ↑ "pompomcamp.com". pompom.com. Archived from the original on 2014-01-05. Retrieved 20 July 2012. External link in |publisher= (help)
  4. 1 2 3 "Seven tourists die in plane crash". The Monitor. Archived from the original on 23 April 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2012. External link in |publisher= (help)
  5. ↑ "British pilot who died in Botswana air crash named". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 2014-03-01. Retrieved 20 July 2012. External link in |publisher= (help)
  6. ↑ "Facts surface despite wall of silence in Moremi Air Botswana Cessna Cash". Stewats Law. Archived from the original on 2014-01-21. Retrieved 20 July 2012.
  7. ↑ "Moremi Air Cessna 208". Irwin Mitchell LLP. Retrieved 20 July 2012.
  8. ↑ "No swede died in plane crash".
  9. ↑ "AIRCRAFT ACCIDENT A2 AKD in the Delta" . Civil Aviation Authority of Botswana. 19 October 2011. Archived February 22, 2014, at the Wayback Machine.
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