avia.wikisort.org - Event

The 1999 Air Botswana incident occurred when Chris Phatswe, a Botswana airline pilot, killed himself by crashing a plane into the airport apron and a group of aircraft at Sir Seretse Khama International Airport in Gaborone, Botswana. He was the only casualty. His actions effectively crippled operations for Air Botswana.[1]

1999 Air Botswana accident

An Air Botswana ATR-42 similar to the one involved
Occurrence
Date	11 October 1999
Summary	Aircraft theft and suicide by pilot
Site	Sir Seretse Khama International Airport, Gaborone, Botswana 24.557°S 25.922°E / -24.557; 25.922
Aircraft
Aircraft type	ATR 42-320
Operator	Air Botswana
Registration	A2-ABB
Occupants	1
Passengers	0
Crew	1
Fatalities	1 (pilot)
Survivors	0

Incident

On 11 October 1999, Phatswe commandeered an Aérospatiale ATR 42-320, registration A2-ABB, from the Air Botswana section of the terminal at Sir Seretse Khama International Airport and took off. For two hours he circled the airport, radioing the control tower and announcing his intention to kill himself. The airport was evacuated as a precaution; passengers later reported a good deal of panic in the terminal. Officials in the tower attempted to convince him to land; efforts were led by General Tebogo Masire, then deputy commander of the Botswana Defence Force.[1] Phatswe threatened to crash it into an Air Botswana building, saying he had a grudge with the airline's management. He demanded to speak to Ian Khama, Botswana's then vice-president, but when officials in the control tower told Phatswe that there were people in the Air Botswana building, he changed his mind. Shortly after being put through to Khama, the ATR-42 began to run out of fuel, so Phatswe carried out a successful landing, but instead of surrendering to airport security, he proceeded to taxi towards the apron at high speed, slamming the stolen plane into two other ATR-42s on the ramp. All three planes were destroyed in a fiery crash, and Phatswe was killed. He was the only casualty.[1]

The three planes were the only operational craft then in the Air Botswana fleet; a fourth plane, a BAe-146, was grounded with technical trouble at the time. Consequently, Phatswe's actions effectively crippled operations for the flag carrier.[1][2]

Motives

Phatswe had repeatedly threatened airport authorities, telling them that he would kill himself, but never gave a reason. At the time of the incident he was on medical leave from the airline, having failed a physical two months previously and been declared unfit to fly; consequently, he was not authorized to take the plane. Airport security was reported to be lax, and it was said to be quite easy for somebody to steal an aircraft.[1]

See also

• 1977 Connellan air disaster - suicide attack by a disgruntled former airline employee using a stolen aircraft
• 2018 Horizon Air Q400 incident - Aircraft theft and suicide crash by a ground employee of Horizon Air
• Accidents and incidents involving the ATR 42 family
• List of accidents and incidents involving airliners by location § Botswana
• List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft

References

External links

• AirDisaster.com report on the incident^[Usurped!] (Archive^[Usurped!])

На других языках

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[de] Air-Botswana-Flugunfall 1999

Den Air-Botswana-Flugunfall 1999 mit einer ATR 42-320 mit dem Luftfahrzeugkennzeichen A2-ABB verursachte am 11. Oktober 1999 der botswanische Pilot Chris Phatswe. Er starb im Rahmen des Pilotensuizids als einzige Person. Bei dem Unfall wurden insgesamt drei Maschinen des Typs ATR 42-320 der Fluggesellschaft Air Botswana zerstört.

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- [en] 1999 Air Botswana ATR 42 crash

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[it] Incidente dell'ATR 42 di Air Botswana del 1999

L'incidente dell'Air Botswana del 1999 si è verificato quando Chris Phatswe, un pilota di linea del Botswana, si uccise facendo schiantare un aereo nel piazzale dell'aeroporto contro un gruppo di aerei all'aeroporto internazionale Sir Seretse Khama di Gaborone, in Botswana. Risulta l'unica vittima. Le sue azioni hanno effettivamente paralizzato le operazioni di Air Botswana, essendo quelli gli unici velivoli operativi della compagnia.[1]

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