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An Embraer Brasilia twin-engine turboprop (EMB-120) operated by African Express Airways, crashed near El Bardale in Somalia early Monday (4), killing all six occupants on board.
The information was provided by the “Airway” website, which specializes in aviation.
Photos of the crash site outside the city of Bardale. All six people on board are dead. The plane was chartered by an NGO and was carrying medical supplies and mosquito nets to Bardale. The accident occurred around 3:45 pm local time. pic.twitter.com/JAwqbNZ54R
The plane reportedly came from the country’s capital Mogadishu and was carrying medical equipment to the city of El Bardale, in addition to the pilot, co-pilot, and four passengers.
According to “Airway”, unconfirmed reports indicate that the plane, with the Kenyan registration number 5Y-AXO, was accidentally shot down after being hit by a rocket fired by Ethiopian military officers monitoring the region.
African media reported that the plane had been chartered by an NGO, but Ethiopian forces were unaware that it was supposed to land in El Bardale and understood the plane’s approach as a threat.
This was the first time that an Embraer commercial aircraft had been shot down. The model launched in Somalia is Brasilia, with the serial number 259, manufactured in 1999 and delivered in the same year to the American airline Comair. The turboprop has been flying with African Express since 2013.
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