‘The aircraft swung ... that’s when people fell out’

AMONG the survivors recovering in Kinshasa General Hospital after the Congo air disaster, which saw more than 100 passengers sucked out of their plane when the cargo ramp opened mid-flight, was a policeman, who gave his name only as Katembo.

“Thirty-five minutes after take-off, we heard a loud noise inside the plane, like hissing, and then the ramp fell off. The aircraft swung from side to side and that’s when the people fell out,” he said. “Only the people who had the reflex to reach for ropes on the walls were able to stay inside,” Katembo added.

Democratic Republic of Congo officials said an enquiry would be carried out by the army since the Kasai provinces, over which the accident happened, are mining areas accessible only to people with special passes from the government. The IL-76, a long-range military transport, cargo and fire-fighting plane, can be fitted, as in this case, with a large rear bay door running for roughly the length of the tail along the belly of the fuselage.