At least 50 people were killed in Congo after an Antonov 26 cargo plane crashed into a Kinshasa neighbourhood shortly after take-off on 4 October. The twinpropeller aircraft belongs to Congolese airline Africa One.
Congo has one of the world’s worst aviation safety records and before this latest crash there had already been a series of recent accidents with at least 30 people killed this year in six plane crashes in the former Belgian colony.
In 1996, at least 350 people died when a Russian-built Antonov-32 cargo plane ploughed through a crowded market in Kinshasa, the country’s worst air disaster. The government is now studying ways of toughening air safety regulations, including improved inspection and harsher penalties for off enders.
Africa One is on the European Union’s airline blacklist. All airlines certified by Democratic Republic of Congo authorities – except for Hewa Bora Airways – are banned from the EU.