Democratic Republic of Congo military plane crashes, killing at least 13 people

(Central News Agency, Kinshasa, Comprehensive Foreign Reports on the 26th) Officials in the Democratic Republic of the Congo said that a military plane crashed in the southwest of the country yesterday, killing at least 13 people, including the pilot and three officers.

Reuters reported that Remy Saki Bokinda, the deputy governor of Kwango province in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, said that the military plane was originally going to fly from the southwestern city of Kikwit to the capital Kinshasa, but it encountered a malfunction on the way and tried to land in Kenge, the capital of Kwango province.

He also pointed out: "Since there is no available runway in the city of Kenji, the plane crashed on a residential land."

Bojinda mentioned that the ranks of the three officers killed included general, major and captain. In addition to soldiers, civilians were also killed on the plane.

A statement from the Democratic Republic of Congo's government read that aviation accident investigation authorities have launched an investigation into the crash.