Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera revealed on Tuesday that there were no survivors after an aircraft carrying Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine others crashed into a forest. Malawian searchers discovered the wreckage of the plane carrying Chilima on Tuesday, a day after it went missing in bad weather.
The military aircraft carrying the 51-year old Chilima, and nine others disappeared on Monday after failing to land in the northern city of Mzuzu due to poor visibility and was instructed to return to Lilongwe, the capital.
A member of the military rescue squad sent photographs with AFP, showing army personnel standing on a hazy slope near a wreckage with the registration number of the Malawi Army Air Wing Dornier 228-202K aircraft.
Rescuers were exploring a fog-cloaked forest south of Mzuzu on Tuesday after officials located the last tower to which the aircraft communicated with before its disappearance.
Earlier, Army Commander General Paul Valentino Phiri stated that other countries, especially Malawi's neighbours, had aided the search operation with helicopters and drones.
On Monday, the group left Lilongwe just after 9:00 a.m. (0700 GMT) to attend the burial of a former cabinet member in Mzuzu, which is around 370 kilometres (230 miles) away before the unfortunate incident.
Shanil Dzimbiri, Malawi's former First Lady, was also on board.
First elected as vice president in 2014, the charismatic yet stern-talking Chilima is a widely loved figure in Malawi, particularly among young people.
However, in 2022, during his second term, Chilima was removed from office after being arrested and charged with graft in connection with a bribery scandal involving a British-Malawian businessman.
Last month, a Malawian court dismissed the charges against him, and he resumed his duties.
