1993 Zambia national football team plane crash
This article's factual accuracy is disputed. (April 2019) |
de Havilland Canada DHC-5D Buffalo | |
Operator | Zambian Air Force |
---|---|
Registration | AF-319 |
Flight origin | Lusaka, Zambia |
1st stopover | Brazzaville, Congo |
2nd stopover | Libreville, Gabon |
Last stopover | Abidjan, Ivory Coast |
Destination | Dakar, Senegal |
Passengers | 25 |
Crew | 5 |
Fatalities | 30 |
Survivors | 0 |
On the evening of 27 April 1993, a
Accident
The flight had been specially arranged by the Zambian Air Force for the football team. The journey was scheduled to make three refuelling stops; the first at Brazzaville, Congo, the second at Libreville, Gabon, and the third at Abidjan, Ivory Coast.[2]
At the first stop in Brazzaville engine problems were noted. Despite this, the flight continued and a few minutes after taking off from the second stop in Libreville the left engine caught fire and failed. The pilot, who had also flown the team from a match in
Aircraft
The aircraft entered service in 1975. The plane had been out of service for five months from late 1992 until 21 April 1993. Test flights were carried out on 22 and 26 April. Prior to the departure for Senegal, checks revealed a number of defects in the engine: carbon particles in oil filters, disconnected cables and trace of heating. However, the flight went ahead as scheduled.[2]
Passengers
The
All 30 passengers and crew, including 18 players, as well as the national team coach and support staff, died in the accident.
Three players of the "Chipolopolo" were playing with
Investigation
A campaign to have the Gabonese crash investigation publicly released continued into the 2000s.[7][8] In November 2003 a preliminary crash investigation report was released by the Gabonese government, which claimed that the left engine had caught on fire, and in an attempt to control the fire the pilot thought he had shut down that engine, when in reality he shut down the right engine due to a faulty light. Despite this relatives of the victims continue to lobby the Zambian government to produce a report on how the aircraft was allowed to leave Zambia, and why the players were transported on a military plane.[9][10][11][12][13]
In May 2002, $4 million was given to families of the deceased players in compensation.[14]
Aftermath
The members of the national team killed in the crash were buried in what became known as "Heroes' Acre", just outside the Independence Stadium in Lusaka.[9]
A new side was quickly assembled, and led by Kalusha Bwalya, faced up to the difficult task of having to complete Zambia's World Cup qualifiers (narrowly missing qualification by finishing one point behind Morocco) and then prepare for the upcoming African Nations Cup which was only months away to be hosted in Tunisia.[3]
The resurrected team defied the odds, and displaying an attacking playing style, reached the
In 2012, Zambia won the
The accident was the subject of the 2015 Spanish/Zambian documentary film Eighteam, directed by Juan Rodriguez-Briso.
Victims
All thirty people on board died in the crash. 24 bodies were recovered, but only 13 could be identified.[19]
Crew
|
Coaching staff
|
Footballers
Source:[20]
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GK | David Chabala | 2 February 1960 (aged 33) | 115 | 0 | Mufulira Wanderers
| |
GK | Richard Mwanza | 5 May 1959 (aged 33) | 8 | 0 | Kabwe Warriors | |
DF | Whiteson Changwe | 19 October 1964 (aged 28) | 31 | 1 | Kabwe Warriors | |
DF | John Soko | 5 May 1968 (aged 24) | 25 | 0 | Nkana | |
DF | Samuel Chomba | 5 January 1964 (aged 29) | 21 | 2 | Dynamos | |
DF | Robert Watiyakeni | 18 October 1969 (aged 23) | 4 | 0 | Dynamos | |
DF | Winter Mumba | unknown | 2 | 0 | Power Dynamos | |
DF | Kenan Simambe | 23 August 1974 (aged 18) | 1 | 1 | Power Dynamos | |
MF | Derby Makinka | 5 September 1965 (aged 27) | 98 | 10 | Al-Ettifaq
| |
MF | Wisdom Mumba Chansa | 17 April 1964 (aged 29) | 34 | 4 | Dynamos | |
MF | Eston Mulenga | 7 August 1961 (aged 31) | 34 | 1 | Nkana | |
MF | Moses Chikwalakwala | 28 August 1969 (aged 23) | 7 | 3 | Nkana | |
MF | Numba Mwila | 18 March 1972 (aged 21) | 4 | 1 | Nkana | |
MF | Godfrey Kangwa | unknown | 1 | 0 | Olympique de Casablanca | |
FW | Timothy Mwitwa | 21 May 1968 (aged 24) | 16 | 2 | Nkana | |
FW | Kelvin Mutale | 20 September 1969 (aged 23) | 10 | 12 | Al-Ettifaq
| |
FW | Patrick Banda | 28 January 1974 (aged 19) | 6 | 3 | Profund Warriors | |
FW | Moses Masuwa | 30 July 1971 (aged 21) | 1 | 0 | Kabwe Warriors |
See also
References
- ^ a b "'Faulty plane' killed Zambia team". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. 28 November 2003. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
- ^ a b c "ASN Aircraft accident de Havilland Canada DHC-5D Buffalo AF-319 Atlantic Ocean, off Gabon". Aviation Safety Network. Flight Safety Foundation. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
- ^ a b Montville, Leigh (18 October 1993). "Triumph On Sacred Ground". Sports Illustrated. Time Inc. Archived from the original on 27 April 2018. Retrieved 17 December 2010. Alt URL
- ^ "Zambia's remarkable journey makes them winners regardless". fourfourtwo.com. 12 February 2012.
- ^ "Soccer heroes remembered". Times of Zambia. Ndola, Zambia: Times Printpak Limited. 28 April 2010. Retrieved 17 December 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
- ^ Gondwe, Kennedy (28 April 2002). "Air crash families threaten legal action". BBC Sport Online. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
- ^ "Zambian MPs demand air crash report". BBC. 28 March 2002. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
- ^ a b "The day a nation cried". BBC Sport Online. British Broadcasting Corporation. 24 April 2003. Retrieved 19 December 2010.
- ^ "Gabon crash victims remembered". Zambia National Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 27 July 2011. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
- ^ Duerden, John (23 January 2010). "Football United: Zambia Making New History After Tragic Past". Goal.com. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
- ^ Kapembwa, Jeff (30 April 2010). "Zambian plane disaster report still not out 17 years later". Southern Times. Windhoek, Namibia: NAMZIM Newspapers (Pty) Limited. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
- ^ Kunda, Robinson (27 April 2010). "Red tape delays Gabon report". Zambia Daily Mail. Retrieved 19 December 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "$4m for Zambian air crash families". BBC Sport Online. British Broadcasting Corporation. 13 May 2002. Retrieved 17 December 2010.
- ^ Mungazi, Farayi (24 January 2010). "Zambia's Kalusha Bwalya relives 1994 Nations Cup final". BBC Sport Online. British Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 22 December 2010.
- ^ Aleksander Losnegård (28 July 2016). "How Zambia restored their fortunes a year after the fatal plane crash of 1993". These Football Times. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
- ^ "Tragedy spurs fairytale story for Zambia". FIFA.com. 27 April 2018. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
- ^ Djazmi, Mani (10 February 2012). "Zambian footballers remember a lost generation of players". BBC Sport. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
- ^ "Today marks 19th Anniversary of Gabon Air disaster". Lusaka Times. 27 April 2012. Retrieved 25 April 2013.
- ^ Sang, Kiplagat (28 April 2022). "FAZ's Kamanga: Zambia can honour 1993 Gabon plane crash victims at Afcon 2023". goal.com. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
External links
- BBC – Famous Air Crash Victims – Part 3: Sportsmen
- Accident description at the Aviation Safety Network