Vice President of Malawi's Plane Missing: Search and Rescue Underway

 A military aircraft carrying Malawi’s vice president, Saulos Chilima, has gone missing after it failed to land as scheduled yesterday morning, according to government officials. “Despite efforts by aviation authorities to establish contact with the aircraft since it disappeared from radar, there has been no success,” stated the government.

The aircraft, which departed just after 9:00 am local time (0700 GMT), was transporting 51-year-old Chilima along with nine others. President Lazarus Chakwera has instructed both regional and national forces to initiate an “immediate search and rescue operation to locate the aircraft,” as per the statement.

Due to the situation, Chakwera, who was set to travel to the Bahamas for official duties, has called off his trip. In 2022, Chilima faced legal issues when he was arrested and accused of involvement in corruption related to a bribery scandal concerning a British-Malawian businessman.

However, last month, a Malawian court dismissed the charges against Chilima following his attendance at multiple court hearings.