1998 Lignes Aériennes Congolaises crash
The 1998 Lignes Aériennes Congolaises crash was a non-scheduled domestic Kindu–Kinshasa passenger service that was shot down by rebel forces, just after takeoff from Kindu Airport, during climbout, on 10 October 1998. All 41 occupants of the aircraft perished in the incident.[1]
Shootdown | |
---|---|
Date | 10 October 1998 |
Summary | Airliner shootdown |
Site | Near Kindu Airport, Kindu, Democratic Republic of Congo 2°57′0″N 25°57′0″E |
Aircraft | |
Aircraft type | Boeing 727-30 |
Operator | Lignes Aériennes Congolaises |
Registration | 9Q-CSG |
Flight origin | Kindu Airport |
Destination | N'djili Airport |
Passengers | 38 |
Crew | 3 |
Fatalities | 41 |
Survivors | 0 |
Aircraft
The aircraft involved was a Lignes Aériennes Congolaises Boeing 727-30, registration 9Q-CSG, that had its maiden flight on 10 March 1965.[1][2] It was delivered new to Lufthansa, before serving Condor until 1981. From there the aircraft was operated by the Royal Oman Police Air Wing under registration A40-CF. In 1993 it was now operated by Seagreen Airlines and later the same year by Shabair under registration 9Q-CSG. In 1994, it was acquired by New ACS before ultimately transfeering to Lignes Aériennes Congolaises in 1997. The airframe was 33 years old at the time of the crash.[3]
Description of the event
The Lignes Aériennes Congolaises Boeing 727-30 took off from Kindu Airport (KND/FZOA) on a domestic non-scheduled passenger flight to N'djili Airport in Kinshasa with 38 passengers and 3 crew on board. Only 3 minutes into the flight, the rear of the aircraft was struck by a Russian-made shoulder-fired Strela 2 surface-to-air missile launched by rebel forces during the Second Congo War. The captain attempted an emergency landing, but the 727 crashed into a dense jungle near Kindu. All 41 people on board perished.[1][4][5][6]
References
- Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 18 June 2012.
- "Airline safety review – Fatal events: hostile action or unlawful Interference with aircraft safety". Flight International: 28. 13–19 January 1999. Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
- "REGISTRATION DETAILS FOR 9Q-CSG (CONGO AIRLINES) 727-30". planelogger.com. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
- "CRASH OF A BOEING 727-30 NEAR KINDU: 41 KILLED". Bureau of Accidents Archives. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
- "Insurgents in Congo Shoot Down an Airliner Carrying 40 People". The New York Times. 11 October 1998. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
- "No survivors in airliner shot down by DRC rebels". Mail & Guardian. 11 October 1998. Retrieved 10 September 2022.