Precision Air plane crashes into Lake Victoria in Tanzania

According to authorities, a Precision Air airplane crashed upon arrival at Bukoba Airport in Tanzania. It operated flight PW494 from Dar es Salaam to Bukoba, Tanzania. Although there are still a lot of details unknown, PW 494 carried 49 passengers and 4 crew members, according to recent accounts from the local media. The incident would have happened on the final approach.

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The largest privately owned airline in Tanzania, Precision Air, identified the aircraft as flight PW 494 and said that it was “engaged in an accident as it was entering Bukoba Airport.” There was no other information in the airline’s statement.

The tail of an ATR 42-500 aircraft with the registration PW 494 is visible above the water, and a rescue mission is currently underway. The airport has dispatched all necessary support personnel and boats to the neighboring aircraft. While some people are swimming away from the water, it appears as though certain turbo blades of the airplane are merged together.

TBC said that 15 people had so far been saved, but it was unclear how many people were on board or whether any people had died.

According to the state-run Tanzania Broadcasting Corporation (TBC), a Precision Air plane crashed into Lake Victoria in Tanzania while attempting to land at an airstrip in Bukoba on Sunday.

Only the plane’s green and brown tail was visible above the surface of Lake Victoria, the largest lake in Africa, in video footage and photos that went viral on social media.

Precision Air just released the following statement on #PW494: pic.twitter.com/jfPai1QJrI

— Aviation Safety Network (ASN) (@AviationSafety) November 6, 2022

According to TBC, the jet “dropped in Lake Victoria this morning due to storm and heavy rainfall,” after taking off from the country’s capital Dar es Salaam. The largest lake in Africa, Lake Victoria, borders Bukoba Airport.