Videos of a plane participating in UN peacekeeping in the region could be seen with rising plumes of smoke. A South African military aircraft has crash-landed at an airport in the troubled Goma area in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), with no injuries yet reported.
Photos and video from the scene have been published with little information yet of what led to the crash.
The aircraft was reportedly being used as part of a UN mission in the DRC.
Reuters has reported that the plane did not suffer any serious damage.
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According to DefenceWeb, The South African military involvement with the DRC’s Force Intervention Brigade (FIB) will continue until at least the end of the current Monusco extension of 20 December this year.
“The UN mission’s FIB is the first-ever peacekeeping unit given an offensive mandate as part of its tasking to protect civilians. It is a Southern African Development Community (SADC) brigade staffed by airmen, medics, and soldiers from Malawi, South Africa, and Tanzania.
They report that South Africa has been a component of the UN Monusco mission – the world body’s largest – since 2013 and the FIB is currently commanded by South African Brigadier General Patrick Dube.
“The infantry battalion currently in DR Congo is Zeerust, North West, headquartered 2 SAI with around 1 300 personnel in the central African country. 2 SAI replaced Phalaborwa-headquartered 7 SAI mid-last year and will end its peace mission deployment in mid-2020.”
The air force is operating three Rooivalk combat support helicopters and five Oryx medium transport helicopters in the DRC.
More info to follow.
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Source: The Citizen
