The 1998 Sudan Air Force crash was the crash of a Sudan Air Force transport plane at Nasir that killed several of the country's most senior government leaders, including the Vice-President Zubair Mohamed Salih.[1][2]

1998 Sudan Air Force crash

An Antonov An-26 similar to the aircraft involved
Accident
Date	12 February 1998
Summary	Overshot the airport's runway while landing in inclement weather
Site	Nasir, South Sudan 8.61616°N 33.06766°E / 8.61616; 33.06766
Aircraft
Aircraft type	Antonov An-26
Operator	Sudan Air Force
Registration	7744
Destination	Juba, southern Sudan
Passengers	50
Crew	7
Fatalities	26
Survivors	31

On the morning of 12 February 1998, a Sudan Air Force Antonov An-26 turboprop attempted to land at Nasir Airport. The craft overshot the end of the runway and slid into the Sobat River.[3] The Sudanese government announced that fog and strong winds had caused the crash.[4] The SPLA's spokesman in Nairobi announced that the crash had not been an accident, but had been caused by an SPLA attack.[1]

Casualties

Of the 57 crew and passengers on board, 26 drowned in the river. Among the dead were:

• Salih, the vice-president
• Musa Sayed Ahmed, Director General of the Supreme Council for Peace
• Arok Thon Arok, an ex-rebel turned government army officer[5]
• Timothy Tutlam, director of the Relief Association of Southern Sudan[6]

Information Minister Brigadier Mohamad Kheir and another minister survived.[7][8]

References