Malawi VP's Plane Crash: No Survivors Found, President Announces

Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera said Vice President Saulos Chilima and all passengers aboard a military plane that had been missing since Monday "died when they hit the ground."

He said the plane's wreckage, which was located near a mountain, was "completely torn apart," with no survivors.

Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine other people were on the plane on Monday morning when the plane disappeared from the airport's radar. The military plane was flying in bad weather.

Earlier, the soldiers were still searching for it in the Chikangawa Forest.

In a press conference on Tuesday, Malawi's army chief, General Paul Valentino Phiri, said fog had reduced visibility in the forest, making search operations difficult

On Monday evening, President Chakwera told Malawians, "I know we're all scared and worried – I'm worried too." He had said he was hopeful of finding survivors.

But Dr. Chilima's UTM (United Transformation Movement) said they were disappointed with the search operation.

The leaders of the UTM party said that the search for the plane began at 9:00 p.m. Monday local time. The Vice President and the President come from different parties but have come together to form a coalition for the 2020 elections.

Chilima, who died at the age of 51, was on his way to represent the state at the funeral of former Minister Ralph Kasambara, who died four days ago.

Shanil Dzimbiri, the wife of the former President, was also on the plane, which took off from the capital, Lilongwe, on Monday morning.

The plane was expected to land at the airport in the northern city of Mzuzu but was pushed back due to poor weather conditions. President Chakwera said that he had spoken to the governments of various countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway, and Israel, all of which had agreed to help "at various levels" to find the plane.

Dr. Chilima had been the Vice President of Malawi since 2014. He was very popular in Malawi, especially among the youth, according to the news agency AFP.

But in 2022, Dr. Chilima was arrested on charges of accepting money to award government contracts.