Plane Crash Inquiry hears testimony on search operation, flight request for late VP Saulos Chilima

A special committee investigating the Malawi military plane crash heard testimony on the scale of the ground search and the circumstances surrounding the flight request for late Vice President Saulos Chilima.  

Former Malawi Defence Force Commander General Valentino Phiri told the committee that he received a request on 8 June 2024 from Lucky Sikwese, who was then secretary in the office of the vice president, asking for an aircraft.  

Phiri said the request was for the aircraft to transport Vice President Saulos Chilima to Mzuzu on 10 June 2024.  

He explained that he informed Sikwese that the only available aircraft had already flown to Mzuzu carrying the late Ralph Kasambara.  

Phiri added that he was asked whether the aircraft could return to Lilongwe to pick up Chilima.  

He said he responded that the matter needed to be checked and that he should also consult the Minister of Defence and President Lazarus Chakwera, who was president at the time.  

According to Phiri, the requesters wanted the aircraft to come to Lilongwe and return on the same day, 10 June 2024, because they planned to see the president off at the airport as he was leaving the country that day.  

Phiri stated that after speaking with President Chakwera, the president said he did not know whether Chilima would return to Malawi from his trip to South Korea, but he granted permission for the aircraft to be used.  

He also told the committee that Minister of Defence Harry Mkandawire was the one designated to stand in for President Chakwera at the funeral arrangements.  

During questioning, Phiri was asked how many teams were deployed on the ground to search for the missing aircraft.  

He replied that it was difficult to say exactly how many teams were deployed, as the commanders on the ground organized the groups based on where the soldiers came from.  

He confirmed, however, that a total of 172 soldiers took part in the search operation.  

When asked why the aircraft was not found on the first day, Major Valentino explained that the failure to obtain a signal forced them to rely on ground teams to search.  

Committee member Walter Nyamilandu asked whether the deployed soldiers were sufficient to search the dense forest area.  

General Valentino responded that the number of soldiers was substantial, and that an additional 30 soldiers from Zomba were also involved, making it possible to carry out the operation.