Flight Details
The airplane departed Wilson Airport at 03:39 hours carrying a cargo of miraa to Guriceel Airstrip, Somalia. Taxi, takeoff, and climb were uneventful.
Inflight Events
At 04:23, while flying at FL230, the crew contacted Nairobi Area Control Centre (ACC) and requested a turn back to Wilson Airport due to a 'slight problem'. The aircraft executed a right turn from a heading of 50° to 240° magnetic and began descending. The crew reported descending to FL220 and intended to continue to FL180. ACC instructed them to initially maintain FL200 due to opposing traffic. At 04:28, the crew stated they could not maintain FL200 and requested FL180 after crossing the traffic. At 04:29, they confirmed their destination as Wilson Airport and indicated no assistance was needed. The aircraft continued descending to FL120.
At 04:41, Nairobi Approach Radar established contact and advised the crew they were 98 nautical miles northeast of November Victor. The crew was instructed to turn left to heading 225° and report when at top of descent, which they did. They reiterated having a 'slight problem' and noted that as a safety measure, one engine had been shut down. They expressed a desire to route direct to Silos. At 04:42, the aircraft, registration 5Y-VVQ, aligned with the northeast access lane via Ndula Marker. At 04:45, the crew confirmed the left engine was malfunctioning and again stated no assistance was needed.
At 04:51, the crew requested radar vectors for an ILS approach to runway 06 at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport with a long final to runway 32 at Wilson Airport. At 05:09, the aircraft descended to 8000 feet heading 260°. At 05:14, vectors were given for runway 32 at Wilson Airport; the aircraft turned right to heading 310° and continued descending to 7000 feet. The crew confirmed the vectors and at 05:15 stated they were passing visual meteorological conditions (VMC). They were informed that Wilson Airport runway 32 was 6.5 nautical miles away in the two o'clock position. The aircraft descended to 6000 feet, and at 05:16 the crew confirmed sight of the runway. Control was transferred from radar to Wilson Tower.
Approach and Accident
5Y-VVQ was cleared for a straight-in approach to runway 32. Wilson Tower provided the airfield QNH as 1022 hPa and reported calm winds. The tower controller had the aircraft in sight and cleared it to land. Around the same time, the aircraft made a 5° right bank, then leveled off, followed by a steep left bank increasing to 30° within 4 seconds. According to tower and eyewitness information, the aircraft appeared high on approach; on short final, it was observed to turn slightly right, then enter a steep left bank. The left wing struck the ground approximately 100 meters outside the airport perimeter fence. The aircraft flipped over, striking and breaking the fence, and came to rest left of runway 32 about 100 meters from its threshold. The aircraft caught fire on impact.
Investigation Findings
Further investigation and interviews with company personnel revealed that the crew had decided to shut down the left engine following a low oil pressure warning. The flight crew did not declare an emergency. The official probable cause was determined as loss of aircraft control at low altitude due to operation of the aircraft below VMCA during a one-engine-inoperative approach.