What happened
A heavy cargo flight operating from Mwanza to Ostend, with scheduled stops in Mombasa and Cairo, experienced a fatal accident shortly after departure. The aircraft, which was transporting 34 tons of fish, was performing a takeoff from runway 03. During the initial climb, the plane struck the approach lights and an earth mound located near the airfield.
The impact caused the aircraft to crash several hundred meters beyond the end of the runway, where it subsequently caught fire. The accident resulted in six fatalities, with no survivors among the crew members. At the time of the incident, the aircraft had a total weight of 135 tons.
Findings
Investigations into the crash highlighted significant runway limitations during the departure phase. A portion of the runway, measuring 2,600 feet of the total 10,991-foot length of runway 03, was unavailable for use due to ongoing construction work. The reduced available runway length is a critical factor in the sequence of events leading to the collision with airfield structures.