Date & Time:
Mar 27, 2017 at 0815 LT
Type of aircraft:
Britten-Norman Islander
Operator:
Registration:
C9-AOV
Flight Phase:
Landing (descent or approach)
Flight Type:
Charter/Taxi (Non Scheduled Revenue Flight)
Survivors:
No
Site:
Mountains
Schedule:
Beira - Mutare - Harare
MSN:
624
YOM:
1970
Country:
Zimbabwe
Region:
Africa
Crew on board:
2
Crew fatalities:
2
Pax on board:
4
Pax fatalities:
4
Other fatalities:
0
Total fatalities:
6
Circumstances:
The twin engine aircraft was performing a charter flight from Beira to Harare with an intermediate stop in Mutare on behalf of the Mozambican company Cornelder. Ten minutes before its ETA in Mutare Airport, while descending to the altitude of 5,200 feet, the crew encountered marginal weather conditions when the aircraft hit obstacles and crashed on the slope of a mountain located in the Vumba Botanical Reserve. The wreckage was found 23 km southeast from the airport. It appears that a passenger survived but later died from his injuries. Among the passengers were Adelino Mesquita, brother of the Minister of Transport and Communications of the Republic of Mozambique.
Probable cause:
Controlled flight into terrain.
