
- 1350 views
No survivors have been found at the site of crash of the missing aircraft, Fly SAX Chairperson Charles Wako has said.
In a statement on Thursday afternoon, Fly Sax said none of the 10 people, including 8 passengers and two crew members, on board the plane survived.
“It is with a heavy heart that we have received information from the teams reaching the crash site that there are no survivors,” a statement from Fly SAX also confirmed.
Rangers from the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) were the first to arrive at the scene at around 1pm on Thursday before the announcement was made.
“At 7:02am one of Fly SAX recovery helicopters sighted the wreckage of the missing plane at Elephant Point in Aberdares,” a statement from the plane operator said on Thursday.
The Cessna C208 plane, registration number 5Y-CAC, was headed to the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) after leaving a Kitale airstrip in Trans-Nzoia County at 4.05pm on Tuesday.
Captain Barbra Wangeci Kamau was flying the plane alongside First Officer and co-pilot Jean Mureithi.
The eight passengers have been identified as Ahmed Ali Abdi, Karaba Sailah Waweru Muiga, Khetia Kishani, Matakasakaraia Thamani, Matakatekei Paula, Ngugi George Kinyua, Pinuertorn Ronald and Wafula Robinson.
The wreckage of the aircraft was spotted at 6.45am, Thursday at Elephant Point, some 11,000 feet above sea level by a team conducting aerial surveillance using a chopper.
“A ground team of military specialists in mountain rescue operations has been dispatched to the site, which is 11,900ft up a 400m cliff face in a dense area,” Transport Principal Secretary Prof Paul Maringa told journalists at Transcom House in Nairobi on Thursday morning.