South Sudan: Five killed in plane crash near Juba

“One of the victims was a South Sudanese man, two Sudanese and two Ukrainians,” David Subak, an official with the South Sudan Civil Aviation Authority, told AFP.

A cargo plane owned by a local operator carried 28 barrels of fuel for the World Food Program (WFP) to Maban, a district with more than 100,000 refugees in the northeast.

>>> Read more: Video. Seven people have been killed in a foreign currency plane crash in South Sudan

Airport general manager Kur Kuol said it collided with a mango tree and caught fire. “Those on board have been burned. The wreckage is in bad condition,” Coul said.

The South Sudan Red Cross has confirmed that rescuers have collected five bodies that were “burned beyond recognition”.

South Sudan, a young independent country since 2011, has lacked reliable transport infrastructure in the grip of a protracted economic and political crisis. Frequent plane crashes are generally said to be due to heavy load and bad weather.

>>> Read more: South Sudan: At least 10 people have been killed in a plane crash in Jonglei province

On March 3, President Salva Kiir ordered the suspension of an airline whose plane crashed in the east of the country, killing all ten people on board, including two pilots. The plane, owned by South Sudan Supreme Airlines, crashed in Jongle State shortly after takeoff from Pierre.

Another plane belonging to local company Southwest Aviation crashed in August 2020, killing four passengers and three crew members.

In 2015, 36 people were killed when a Soviet-era Antonov plane crashed in Juba. Also in 2017, a plane from the runway collided with a fire engine before catching fire, but 37 people miraculously escaped unharmed in the crash.