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Student pilot, instructor killed after Safarilink, Cessna aircraft collide in Nairobi

The Cessna 172 aircraft is puctured after crashing at the Nairobi National Park on March 5, 2024.

By Dennis Tarus and AFP | 05 Mar 2024

The airline said a scheduled flight was cut short due to a "loud bang".

A student pilot and instructor died on Tuesday when their aircraft collided with a passenger plane over the capital, Nairobi, police said.

The collision involved a Safarilink Dash 8 aircraft and a Cessna 172 Skyhawk, registration 5Y-NNJ, owned by Ninety Nines Flying School, which operates from the Wilson Airport.

Nairobi police boss Adamson Bungei confirmed the deaths to AFP via text message without providing further details.

An earlier police report seen by AFP said the passenger plane "requested to turn back for landing" after the collision

The Cessna 172 aircraft is puctured after crashing at the Nairobi National Park on March 5, 2024.

Safarilink flies to 18 destinations in Kenya, neighbouring Tanzania and tourist magnet Zanzibar, according to its website.

Its aircraft was forced to turn back midair shortly after taking off from the airport. It was heading to Diani with 39 passengers and five crew members on board.

Safarilink said it was forced to cut short flight 053 due to a "loud bang". Its plane landed safely at Wilson Airport while the Cessna crashed at the Nairobi National Park.

"The crew decided to immediately turn back to Wilson Airport for further inspection and assessment and landed safely," Safarilink said in a statement.

All passengers and crew onboard the aircraft were unharmed in the accident, it said.

"The relevant agencies have been notified and together with Safarilink Aviation are investigating," it said.

Ninety-Nines Flying School confirmed "an incident this morning" in a phone call with AFP but declined to give more information.

The training school caters for "private, commercial and airline sectors", according to its website.

In a statement, the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) said investigations to establish the cause of the incident had commenced, through agencies led by the Air Accident Investigations Department (AAID) and the National Police Service.