Knew the co-pilot very well..he was an amazing friend and an excellent pilot! He will be sorely missed by all..love and miss you my friend! May you forever fly with the angels..

RIP to all, especially to my dear friend, the co-pilot on board. He was an honest and kind soul and a fantastic hands on pilot. You will be sorely missed by all who's lives you touched. My condolences and prayers go out to your family and the families of all others on board.:sad:

Sad news indeed, condolences to all.
I flew that same aerie all over west africa in the Rossair days, could anyone PM with names of the crew.

So long as the families have been informed first, I dont see why the names cannot be posted so we can all know if it is someone we know.

SA pilot killed in DRC crash
02/09/2008 14:25 - (SA)


Kinshasa - The pilot of a plane that crashed during a storm in the Democratic Republic of Congo on Monday was a South African man, a family member has confirmed.

The Beechcraft carrying 17 passengers and crew crashed into a ridge in the eastern part of the country. The US based group that operated the route told AP that there appeared to be no survivors.

Rudi Knoetze, the 24-year-old pilot, was born in Port Elizabeth but was living in Johannesburg, the family member, who requested anonymity, told News24 on Tuesday.

"His parents are distraught. Their lives revolved around him," the family member said.

She pointed out that a radio report about the accident stating that Knoetze's mother was on holiday in PE was incorrect. "His grandparents live in PE and will be flying to Johannesburg tonight to support his parents in this difficult time."

"His father was always so proud of him," she said.

Bad weather

The plane went missing in bad weather late on Monday, a spokesperson for the UN office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs told AP.

The plane was on its way from the city of Kisangani to the town of Bukavu, on the DRC's eastern border with Rwanda, when it lost contact with ground control.

Rescuers spotted the wreckage of the Beechcraft aircraft on Tuesday about 15km northwest of the town of Bukavu, on the border with Rwanda.

Air Serv International, a Warrenton, Virginia-based group, runs the twice-weekly aid delivery flight between Kisangani and Bukavu.

"Search and rescue efforts were initiated early this morning and visual confirmation of the downed aircraft was made," a company statement said.

The location was on steep ridge, it said.

South African commercial company

Air Serv International describes itself as a not-for-profit aviation organisation that supports humanitarian programmes worldwide.

No Air Serv personnel were involved in the crash, group spokesperson Suzanne Musgrave told AP by telephone from Warrenton.

She said the plane was being flown by a South African commercial company, Cem Air.

A senior official with the South African company confirmed that the plane used for the flight was owned by Cem Air, and that two of its crew were flying the aircraft.

"I'm in contact with the South African Air Force base there, and they haven't given me any information about any survivors," Cem Air's chief pilot MJ Booysen said.

"The airplane at this point is missing, but we are on standby for further information," he said. - News24-AP

RIP to all
 

Condolences to all

Rudi you were a very good guy & hard worker; take care all

Thanks I.R.Pirate

I knew Rudi very well while i was still doing my comm in FAGC he was already instructing at Babcock,he was a very good guy very friendly and we really got along,it is a very sad moment.Rudi you'll be dearly missed and remembered.May his soul and the rest of the casualties rest in peace

Rudi you were always a pleasure to fly with, as well as being an officer and gentleman. Fly high and fast !

Any news on who the skipper was ?

The skippers family has not been informed as of yet - so it should not be published here until this has been done. Please respect this.

So Very Sad
 

I am so sad to hear about this accident - my thoughts, heartache and condolences are with the family and friends of both pilots and everyone else who is affected by this tragedy. RIP guys, you will be sorely missed.

Very sorry to hear about this, condolences to the families of the crew and passengers.

Was that the aircraft that AirServ sold the seats on, Cemair leased in and crewed, and Star Air Cargo provided the AOC for?

Approach into Bukavu ????
 

What is the grid Mora over Bukavu.
What approach were they using into Bukavu???

yes that is the A/C

my thoughts as well heli-jet..

If it was their 3rd tour in the area then they must have know/seen that mountain range before... Last time i checked, there were no approaches for Bukava, only visual one's or self made GPS letdows (practiced alot in VMC)..

If i remember correctly, the mountains were about 8000-9000ft there..

13000' Grid MORA as I recall.

Blood on your hands AGAIN
 

Mr M v M-N you again have blood on your hands!
Get out of aviation and STAY out.
Cemair have had about 5 serious incidents in the past year or 2.
No wonder CAA would not allow you AOC.

Coming from a Ex Cemair crew member, no Jepp charts provided, no EN-Route maps given- you had to make do with what you could.

Its time this person in charge gets OUT. :*

It is so sad to see DRC claim yet another ZS aircraft. Those Rwenzori mountains are no joke. I lost a good friend a little over two years ago who also had a CFIT just north of Goma and have never seen the final report on that accident. Do the CAA or local authorities ever do investigations into these accidents, or will they forever be shrouded in mystery?
JBG

Bukavu
 

Bukavu in the nastiest places in the DRC to operate to and from. Nasty mountains rings the western side, the side this flight approached from. (The last of the high mountains of the rift valley) Scared the hell out of me on a couple of occasions and if you not careful the can bite. In bad weather a CFIT in that area is a good possibility. There is no approach into Bukavu and no beacons.

RIP and condolences to all family members and friends

Lets keep this treat factual please and not speculate on whats right or wrong.

johhnybgoode, was your friend in the c208 that crashed into the mountain?