Contrasting testimonies in plane crash inquiry

He said that on June 10 2024, after learning the aircraft carrying vice-president Saulos Klaus Chilima had gone missing, he called Moses Nthakomwa, a close friend of Chilima, to express his condolences. Msonthi said he began the conversation believing Chilima and his wife Mary, who had initially been reported to be among the passengers, had died. He said his instinct suggested the aircraft had crashed because of poor weather, the crew’s prolonged silence and the aircraft’s failure to reach its destination.

However, Msonthi stressed that he had no evidence the aircraft had crashed and that his assessment was based solely on instinct. His testimony appeared to contradict earlier evidence by Nthakomwa, who told the committee that Msonthi called him at about 8.19pm on June 10 and allegedly described details of the crash. Msonthi denied having any prior knowledge of the aircraft’s fate, insisting he had received no official communication confirming the crash or the location of the wreckage.

Committee chairperson Walter Nyamilandu-Manda said Msonthi was summoned after earlier testimony suggested he knew the aircraft had been found on June 10, although the public was officially informed the following day. He said the committee wanted to reconcile conflicting accounts and establish an accurate sequence of events. Earlier, former National Intelligence Service (NIS) director general Dokani Ngwira testified on security and intelligence matters before and after the crash.

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Ngwira told the committee that the NIS had no role in organising Chilima’s trip to Nkhata Bay but was informed thta the vice-president was travelling there to attend the funeral of the late Ralph Kasambara. He said that around 11am on June 10, he received a report that the military aircraft carrying Chilima and eight others had gone missing. Ngwira said he immediately informed then Secretary to the President and Cabinet Colleen Zamba, who directed that an emergency meeting be convened to brief then President Lazarus Chakwera. He said search and rescue efforts began as soon as authorities confirmed the aircraft had failed to return.

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