Uganda: Inside the ‘Crash’ of Chopper Carrying Tayebwa

Sources have provided finer details of the crash of a chopper carrying Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa.

Tayebwa, on Saturday, attended President Museveni’s commissioning of the newly constructed Kole-Gulu-Nebbi-Arua 132kv power line connecting the West Nile sub-region to the national grid.

The Deputy Speaker later rushed to Bushenyi where he attended the giveaway ceremony (Kuhingira) of Edith Ainomugisha and Albert Bagabe.

Ainomugisha is the daughter of National Water and Sewerage Corporation Managing Director, Dr. Eng. Silver Mugisha and Annet Katusiime Mugisha, the Woman MP for Bushenyi.

With the function ending a little late, Tayebwa’s convoy rushed to Nyakisharara airfield where he was supposed to board a chopper back to Kampala.

Deputy Speaker Tayebwa had earlier attended a Kuhingira function in Bushenyi.(Courtesy photo)However, at the airfield, the deputy speaker’s team was informed that it was late and the chopper couldn’t fly at night because of lack of night vision.

“They were advised to sleep in Mbarara and take off the next morning,” a source privy to the matter told the Nile Post.

Another source says that whereas Tayebwa’s team had accepted to sleep in Mbarara, they were convinced by BAR’s CEO Barak Orland that he could ably fly them to Kampala, despite being nighttime.

The team would later board another chopper. Fire was later seen coming from the cockpit of the chopper, prompting panic, especially from the passengers.

The pilot decided to crash land the chopper and it is when Tayebwa’s security team engaged in the rescue of the principal and other passengers.

The source says all people aboard the chopper are currently fine, with minor injuries.

As we await communication from BAR Aviation about the incident, our sources say that the fire stemmed from a technical glitch on the chopper which later crash-landed at the airfield and burnt to ashes.