The aviation school whose plane was involved in a mid-air crash with a Safarlink plane that was bound for Diani on Tuesday morning has broken silence on the incident.
In a statement, Ninety Nines Flying School confirmed that their aircraft had two passengers; a student and an instructor, when the collision occurred.
The two died on the spot after their aircraft crashed into the Nairobi National Park. The Safari Link plane, that had 44 people on board, turned back and safely landed at Wilson Airport.
“It is with a heavy heart that we wish to inform our esteemed customers and the general public of a fatal accident that involved one of our aircraft while on a routine training flight today at about 0940h local time.
“The aircraft had two crew on board; an instructor and a student. Investigations to determine the cause of the accident are being carried out by the relevant authorities. We condole with the families, friends and relatives of the deceased,” the statement read.
In a separate statement, Ninety Nines said that prayers for their fallen student will be held on Wednesday ahead of her burial later in the day.
The deceased, Mariam Omar was hailed as a kind and cheerful person.
“Prayers for our student Mariam Omar will be held today 6th March at 1pm at Masjid Nur in South C, Nairobi. Burial will be held at Langata muslim cemetery after prayers.
We are lucky to have experienced your one-of-a-kind personality. Always bubbly and cheerful, we remember you with a smile Mariam,” the school said.
Following the tragedy, the Kenya Aviation Authority released a statement saying that investigations have been launched to determine what led to the collision.
Safari Link on the other hand, also confirmed the incident saying that there were no causalities on their side.
“Safarilink Aviation wishes to report that this morning at 9:45 Local Time our flight number 053 with 39 passengers and 5 crew on board headed to Diani experienced a loud bang soon after take-off. The crew decided to immediately turn back to Nairobi-Wilson Airport for further inspection and assessment and landed safely. There were no casualties reported,” Safarilink stated.
