The Malawi government has confirmed that an aircraft carrying Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine others has gone missing. This was disclosed in a statement by the government’s Secretary, Colleen Zamba, on Monday, June 10, 2024.
The statement revealed that aviation authorities lost contact with the aircraft shortly after it went off the radar. “The Office of the President and Cabinet wishes to inform the general public that the Malawi Defense Force Aircraft that left Lilongwe today, Monday, 10 June 2024 at 09:17 hours, carrying the Vice President, the Right Honourable Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima, and nine others, failed to make its scheduled landing at Mzuzu International Airport at 10:02,” Zamba stated.
General Valentino Phiri**, Commander of the Malawi Defense Force, has briefed President Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera on the incident. Consequently, the President has canceled his scheduled departure for the Bahamas and ordered an immediate search and rescue operation to locate the aircraft. “All regional and national agencies have been mobilized to conduct an immediate search and rescue operation to locate the whereabouts of the aircraft,” the statement added.
Updates on the situation will be provided as more information becomes available.
