Defense Force aircraft carrying Malawi Vice-President Saulos Chilima, alongside nine others, has gone missing.
This was made known in a statement from the Office of Malawi President and Cabinet on Monday.
According to the release, the aircraft, which left the country’s capital of Lilongwe at 09:17 on Monday, failed to make its scheduled landing at Mzuzu International Airport at 10:02.
In light of the development, Malawi President Lazarus Chakwera has ordered a search and rescue operation to commence immediately after aviation officials failed to contact the aircraft.
After being briefed about the development, the President also cancelled his scheduled departure for the Bahamas.
The public is urged to stay informed as updates on the situation will be provided as soon as further information is available.
The statement read in parts, “All efforts by aviation authorities to make contact with the Aircraft since it went off the radar have failed thus far. As such, the Commander of the Malawi Defense Force, General Valentino Phiri, has since informed His Excellency Dr Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera of the incident and the President has since cancelled his scheduled departure for the Bahamas and ordered all regional and national agencies to conduct an immediate search and rescue operation to locate the whereabouts of the aircraft.
“The public will be updated on any developments in the situation as facts are established.”
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