No one survived the crash of a military helicopter in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), on Wednesday, as reported by local media referencing the DRC’s Airway Authority (RVA).
The helicopter, operated by the Armed Forces of the DRC (FARDC), went down around 11 a.m. local time on the runway at Ndolo Airport, Kinshasa’s second airport. All three occupants—a pilot, a co-pilot, and a technician, described as “expatriates”—lost their lives. Sources from the RVA indicated that the pilot was found still strapped in his seat and died instantly, while the other two crew members succumbed to their injuries en route to a nearby hospital. This detail was corroborated by General Fae Ngama, a FARDC commander, to the Congolese Press Agency, the official media outlet of the DRC.
Christophe Lomami, the mayor of the Barumbu commune where the airport is located, also confirmed the incident, stating that the cause of the crash is still unknown. The FARDC has yet to release an official statement regarding the accident.