The sole survivor of a fatal plane crash in the Democratic Republic of Congo has described how a rampaging crocodile escaped from a duffel bag, leading to the crash that killed 20 people.
For years, the crash of a Filair domestic flight from Kinshasa in the Congo on 25 August 2010 was thought to have been caused by the aircraft running out of fuel. The twin-engine, Czech-manufactured turboprop crashed into a house 2 kilometres short of the runway at Bandundu Airport.
All but one of the 21 people aboard died.
Now, finally, the only survivor of the crash has come forward and given a first-person account to African magazine Jeune Afrique.
It was not a lack of fuel but an escaped crocodile that caused the plane to crash, according to the survivor.
A passenger had smuggled a crocodile aboard to sell later, concealing the reptile in a duffel bag. The crocodile escaped and began menacing passengers, who leapt from their seats in terror and rushed to one side of the plane to avoid the intruder.
Some, including a flight attendant, tried to find safety in the cockpit, the witness stated.
“A flight attendant ran off towards the flight deck, followed by passengers,” AviationSafety.net reported later. “Thus, the centre of gravity moved too much to the front.
Pilot Dany Philemotte and the first officer Chris Wilson then lost control of the aircraft.
Only one passenger survived – and the crocodile. The unfortunate croc is said to have been killed later by authorities.
Written by Peter Needham
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