A small passenger plane belonging 0to Precision Air on Sunday morning crashed into Lake Victoria while approaching the Bukoba Airport located in neighbouring Tanzania.
Tanzania officials say 26 of the 43 passengers who were aboard the flight have been rescued and moved to a nearby hospital after the airplane crashed on approach to the airport due to bad weather conditions.
Photos and videos that went viral on social media from Sunday morning showed the Precision Air plane partly submerged in the lake milled by emergency and rescue officials assisted by fishermen.
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Michael Ngaleku Shirima, a Tanzanian businessman, entrepreneur and philanthropist, is the founder and current chairman of Precision Air, Tanzania's largest privately-owned airline.
“When the aircraft was about 100 meters midair, it encountered problems and bad weather. It was raining and the plane plunged into the water. Everything is under control,” said Kagera Province police boss William Mwampaghale to the media.
He added: “We have managed to save quite a number of people.”
The police commanded added that efforts to rescue the remaining passengers and crew were ongoing following the crash-landing of the regional commercial flight.