Gunship
17th Apr 2004, 13:17
Five Canadian tourists and a South African pilot narrowly escaped death when their small Cessna plane crashed on Friday on take off near southwestern Uganda's mountain gorilla park, Ugandan officials said.
"The six-seater plane crashed soon after it was airborne, but they all survived, with three of the six people on board being injured," Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) spokesperson Ignatius Igundula told AFP by telephone from southwest Uganda.
Uganda Wildlife Authority spokesperson Lillian Nsubuga said the aircraft burst into flames soon after the passengers - three men and two women, along with their South African pilot, escaped from the craft.
"It had just taken off, but there was a strong wind that forced it down in a banana plantation near the park's airstrip and it was still burning," Nsubuga said, explaining that it was the first time such an incident had occurred in the mountainous area.
Igundula said that the cause of the crash was not yet known, but that the CAA had begun an investigation.
Nsubuga confirmed the accident, saying the Canadians had the previous day been tracking the rare mountain gorillas at Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park in Uganda's Kanungu district.
The plane belonged to Air-Serv, an aviation company based at Uganda's Entebbe Airport.
From News 24
"The six-seater plane crashed soon after it was airborne, but they all survived, with three of the six people on board being injured," Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) spokesperson Ignatius Igundula told AFP by telephone from southwest Uganda.
Uganda Wildlife Authority spokesperson Lillian Nsubuga said the aircraft burst into flames soon after the passengers - three men and two women, along with their South African pilot, escaped from the craft.
"It had just taken off, but there was a strong wind that forced it down in a banana plantation near the park's airstrip and it was still burning," Nsubuga said, explaining that it was the first time such an incident had occurred in the mountainous area.
Igundula said that the cause of the crash was not yet known, but that the CAA had begun an investigation.
Nsubuga confirmed the accident, saying the Canadians had the previous day been tracking the rare mountain gorillas at Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park in Uganda's Kanungu district.
The plane belonged to Air-Serv, an aviation company based at Uganda's Entebbe Airport.
From News 24