Plane crash kills 5 S Africans

2004-09-10 10:46

Johannesburg - A South African-registered light aircraft crashed in southern Zambia late yesterday, killing all six people on board, including five South Africans, according to reports from SABC News and Reuters.

According to the reports, Chitalu Kabaila, a civil aviation director, said the plane crashed in Zimba, 460km south of the capital Lusaka, after it developed an engine fault minutes after taking off from nearby Livingstone international airport.

A senior aviation official reportedly said the pilot, believed to be a Canadian, told the control tower that there was an engine leakage on the plane and that he would be returning to Livingstone. "The pilot is believed to be a Canadian while all the five passengers were South Africans," state radio was reported to have said.

Reports claimed aviation officials said the plane was headed to Lusaka after a brief stop-over in Livingstone. It had come from the tourist resort of Mfuwe in eastern Zambia.

- News24