In a tragic turn of events, Malawi’s Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine other individuals lost their lives when their military plane crashed in the Chikangawa Forest, a densely vegetated area known for its challenging terrain. The crash occurred on Monday morning during a flight from Lilongwe to Mzuzu. President Lazarus Chakwera confirmed the devastating news in a live address on state television.
The incident unfolded as Vice President Chilima was attempting to return to Lilongwe by 5 PM to bid farewell to President Chakwera, who was departing for The Bahamas and Switzerland. However, at approximately 10:50 AM, the plane informed the ground crew that landing in Mzuzu was impossible due to bad weather, and it was the last communication received before the aircraft disappeared from radar.
Upon learning of the plane’s disappearance, President Chakwera immediately ordered the Malawi Defence Forces to investigate and initiate a search and rescue mission. The search efforts were compounded by the vastness of Chikangawa Forest, covering over 50,000 hectares, and the challenging weather conditions.
Despite these difficulties, soldiers, police officers, and forest rangers continued their search overnight. On Tuesday, President Chakwera announced that the wreckage of the plane had been found, and there were no survivors. He expressed profound sorrow and extended his condolences to the nation, describing Vice President Chilima as “a good man, a devoted father, and a formidable vice president.”
The Vice President, aged 51, was en route to represent the government at the burial of former government minister Ralph Kasambara. Also on board was former First Lady Shanil Dzimbiri. The plane’s crew had been advised against landing in Mzuzu due to poor visibility, and air traffic controllers directed them to return to Lilongwe. Unfortunately, contact with the plane was lost shortly after this directive.
The military is now tasked with transporting the remains of the victims to Lilongwe, and funeral arrangements will be announced in due course. President Chakwera called for a moment of silence to honor the victims, emphasizing the profound loss felt by the nation.
Very Sad news. They are voting in malawi in 2025. We hope chakwera did not instruct radar communication withdrawal
If there was a referendum to put Zambia, Malawi and Zimbabwe together.
Vote will be 95% yes, capital city will be Lusaka. And first Federal president will be Hakainde Hichilema.
Chakwera mingalato…..let me just work 4 jobs….POLITICS NO THANKS…am good
Ine I blame that toothless crocodile Mwanawangaagwa. This happened after he blamed Zambia and Malawi.
Morgan Tswangirai went into an Alliance with Mugabe….and all of a sudden he developed “cancer”……and he eventually died….
President HH should offer material support to our neighbors through ZAF. It is clear that the VP was using a very old plane. Zambia can extend some services to MAF until a time that they are sufficiently resourced. We can also offer their airmen training and other support. The Malawian people are our brothers that the colonialists separated for their convenience. That plane was a flying coffin and it brought memories of the Gaboon disaster
I agree with you we should just bring back the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland….Zambia…Zimbabwe and Malawi one country
@Maria I know a Zambian who keeps reminding Malawians that they are Zambia’s 11th province kekekekeke because most of them live in Zambia and they lend us a President now and then; i.e. Kaunda, Lungu, Kamanga etc. And of course Zimbabwe is our 12th province South Africa and Namibia 13th and 14th. They all got liberated from Lusaka
These so called Political alliances are very dangerous…its like signing your own death certificate….they didn’t renew the contract for Martha Chizuma who was the DPP because she was going after members in the Chakwera government…she said Chakwera Government is the most corrupt Government in the history of Malawi…anyway let God be the Judge…Politicians die mysteriously because they create alot of enemies….now lets see if Chakwera will still run for President because according to the Tonse Alliance Agreement Chakwera shouldn’t be on the ballot box in 2025
W should send a senior govt official to represent our country in this difficult time. It looks like a task for our Vice President
We should also send Mutale Mwanza to represent us
Charity starts at home and at this time we cant look after ourselves
Very sad, we will miss the evening TV news on this story because ZESCO power in PHI/Mtendere went at 06hrs this morning today Tuesday, and it is now after 19 30hrs with over 12hrs of continuous no supply of ZESCO power. Not sure if the rules have been revised, do we have an MP in this place.
ZESCO IS THE MP AND A LAW UNTO THEMSELVES
WHY WE CANT ALL SPEAK WITH ONE VOICE AND CHANGE TOP MANAGEMENT
good news oh
AFRICOM is quietly taking out Africa’s future leaders. We need to change tactics, donch kubeba. Hide your leaders, hide your plans.