Incident Overview
Description
An Ilyushin 76T cargo plane, registered S9-SAB, was destroyed when it crashed into Lake Victoria, shortly after takeoff from Entebbe Airport (EBB), Uganda. All four crew members and seven passengers were killed in the accident. The IL-76 cargo plane was registered in Sao Tome and Principe as S9-SAB and operated by Aerolift Company of South Africa. It was chartered by Dynacorp International, an American company which had been contracted by the African Union peace keeping mission to Somalia, AMISON to provide logistical support. At Entebbe the airplane was loaded with tents and water purification equipment, bound for Mogadishu, Somalia. The four crew members were Russians and the other seven persons included three senior military officers from Burundi, one Indian from Dynacorp, one South African from AMISON and two Ugandans. At 05:06, the aircraft was cleared to take off by the Entebbe Airport Control Tower. At 05:12, the IL-76 got airborne from runway 17 and was instructed to contact Entebbe Area Control Centre (ACC). The aircraft never contacted the Entebbe ACC as instructed. At 05:14, the control tower again called the flight and there was no response. At about the same time, the tower controller observed a fire which was appearing from the aircraft engines. The airplane struck the surface of Lake Victoria, broke up and burned.
Primary Cause
Mechanical failure of the aircraft’s engines during takeoff.Mechanical failure of the aircraft’s engines during takeoff.Share on:
