Malawi-registered plane vanishes in DR Congo

A Malawi-registered aircraft has disappeared in the Democratic Republic of Congo after the crew reported losing an engine mid-flight.

Search teams are combing a remote area of eastern DRC after the aircraft vanished while attempting to divert to another airport.

The Let L-410 turboprop, registration 7Q-GMR, took off from Beni in North Kivu Province at about 12:11pm local time on Friday for Kasongo. About an hour into the flight, the crew reportedly told another aircraft they had lost one of the plane’s Walter M601 engines and were diverting to Walikale.

That was the last known communication from the aircraft.

An emergency locator transmitter (ELT) signal was later detected near Kitshanga, about 100 nautical miles south of Beni, but the aircraft failed to reach Walikale or any other known airfield.

Two crew members were believed to be on board. By Saturday, search and rescue teams backed by aircraft were still searching the area, with no wreckage or survivors publicly confirmed.

The aircraft carries the 7Q registration prefix assigned to Malawi, although it was operating in the Democratic Republic of Congo when it disappeared.