A turboprop aircraft carrying 13 people crashed in western Democratic Republic of Congo, leaving no survivors.
The Let L-410, registered as 9S-GUC and operated by Tracep Congo Aviation, was flying from Kikwit to Kinshasa N'Dolo when it hit mechanical trouble.
The crew tried an emergency diversion to Kenge in Kwango province, but the plane went down during the landing attempt.
No Landing Strip in Kenge
Kwango Vice Governor Remy Saki Bokinda said the aircraft crashed into a residential plot because no landing strip was available in Kenge.
Authorities said satellite imagery and ground information confirmed the Kenge aerodrome had been disused since 2023, with houses and roads built over the former runway.
Witnesses saw the aircraft circling several times while looking for a landing space before it lost control and burst into flames on impact.
Among the victims was General Likulia Bakumi, the army's auditor general, along with a major, a captain, other military staff, and civilians.
Bokinda said all those on board died, with 12 burned beyond recognition, while the pilot's body was found outside the aircraft.
The crash marks the second loss of an L-410 for Tracep Congo Aviation in about two months, after a previous engine failure accident in July 2026.
Congo's aviation accident investigation authority, the BPEA, said investigators have been sent to the site to conduct a full probe into the cause of the disaster.
