The wreckage of the helicopter after it hit the ground
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I The pilot, co-pilot and flight engineer are some of the survivors if the ill-feted helicopter crash. The copter, which was used by an African Union peacekeeping mission crashed at the international airport in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, killing five passengers, and injuring three Somalis on the ground.
According to Felix Kulayigye, the Ugandan military spokesperson the spokesperson, investigations are on to ascertain the cause of the fatal accident.
He said the helicopter had taken off from Baledogle Airfield in the Lower Shabelle and crash-landed at Aden Adde international airport just before touching down.
“They miraculously survived with serious injuries and severe burns”, said Kulaigye, adding that the helicopter had been conducting a routine combat escort mission.
Ugandan troops are part of an 11,000-strong African Union (AU) force helping the government fight the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab group, which has been waging a brutal insurgency in Somalia for more than two decades.
AUSSOM also confirmed that at least three people had survived the crash, which it said took place at about 7:30am (04:30 GMT).
Ahmed Maalim, the head of the Somali Civil Aviation Authority, said that the helicopter had come down in the airport’s military section after flying in from the Balidogle airbase in the Lower Shabelle region, about 90km (56 miles) north-west of Mogadishu.
He said that the impact of the crash had caused munitions on board to detonate, destroying nearby structures and injuring three civilians.
Somalia’s state-run news agency reported that the fire was quickly contained by the emergency services at the Aden Adde International Airport.
