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On 8 January 1996 an overloaded Air Africa or African Air Antonov An-32B wet leased from Moscow Airways destined for Kahemba Airport failed to takeoff from N'Dolo Airport in Kinshasa, DR Congo, and overshot the runway into the crowded Simbazikita street market, killing an estimated 297. The aircraft was operating out of license, according to the Russian Air Transport Department.
[edit] BackgroundAfter decades of conflicts in sub-saharan Africa, the air transport business is complex and often illegal. Johan Peleman explains:
It has been reported that this flight was carrying weapons to UNITA:
[edit] CrashWhile attempting to take off fully fueled and overloaded from N'Dolo Airport's short runway, the An-32B did not achieve sufficient speed to bring its nose up, yet began to lift. It crashed through the open-air Simbazikita produce market, full of shacks, pedestrians, and cars. The fuel load ignited. The number of casualties cited varies from 225 (per the manslaughters charged) to 348.[3] [edit] AftermathThe first injured went to the Mama Yemo Hospital (now Kinshasa General Hospital), which was quickly overwhelmed. Two other hospitals took the additional victims. Mobutu and Saolona both attended the funeral on January 10, 1996 at the Protestant Cathedral du Centennaire.[4] The Russian pilots, Nicolai Kazarin and Andrei Gouskov were charged and convicted of manslaughter, each receiving the maximum two year sentence. At trial they admitted they were using borrowed clearance papers from Scibe Airlift, that they knew the flight was illegal, and that the flight was actually bound for Angola. Scibe Airlift and African Air paid fines of US$1.4 million to the families and the injured.[5] [edit] References
[edit] Further reading
Coordinates: 4°19′48″S 15°19′05″E / 4.330°S 15.318°E
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