A Somali Civil Aviation Authority official has confirmed the crash of an African Union helicopter at Mogadishu’s international airport earlier today.
Ahmed Maallin Hassan, the Director General of the Somali Civil Aviation Authority, shared details with state media following the crash of a vertical takeoff helicopter at the Aden Adde International Airport.
According to Hassan, the helicopter belonged to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS, formerly AMISOM) and had departed from Baledogle airbase in the Lower Shabelle region before crashing in the Afisyooni section of the airport.
The aircraft was carrying eight people at the time of the incident. Their conditions remain unknown as emergency crews are actively working to extinguish the fire sparked by the crash and assess the situation.
Director General Hassan noted that investigations into the cause of the crash have already begun, though no official reason has been confirmed yet.
Despite the incident, operations at the airport are continuing as normal, except for a 600-meter section of the runway near Afisyooni, which has been temporarily closed due to debris from the crash site.
