A fatal aircraft crash near Kenge in DR Congo claimed the lives of two senior military justice officials and others aboard.
President Félix Tshisekedi orders an investigation after a Let L-410 crashes near Kenge, killing everyone aboard, including two military justice chiefs.
At least 14 people, including two senior officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s military justice system, died when a Let L-410 aircraft crashed near Kenge in Kwango Province on Friday, September 25, 2026.
The aircraft was flying from Kikwit to Kinshasa when it reportedly experienced technical problems. The crew attempted to land at Kenge’s old airstrip, but the plane came down in the Manzawu residential area.
Everyone aboard was killed. Early reports placed the number of deaths at 13, while subsequent accounts raised the toll to 14. Despite the aircraft crashing close to homes, reports indicated that nobody on the ground was killed or injured.
Military justice chiefs among the victims
The Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo, known as FARDC, confirmed the deaths of Lieutenant General Mutombo Katalayi Tiende Joseph and Lieutenant General Likulia Bakumi, along with other members of the military delegation.
Mutombo served as First President of the High Military Court, while Likulia was Auditor General of the FARDC. Their deaths leave the armed forces mourning two senior figures who held leading positions within its military justice institutions.
Other members of the delegation and the aircraft’s crew also died in the crash. The military acknowledged those losses in a statement confirming the accident and the deaths of the two senior officials.
Reported technical problems before attempted landing
Initial accounts described technical difficulties during the flight between Kikwit and the capital, Kinshasa. The reported attempt to reach the old airstrip at Kenge preceded the aircraft’s crash into the residential area.
Those accounts provide an early outline of the flight’s final stages, but the precise cause of the accident remains to be established. The reported technical problems have not been presented as a confirmed finding of the investigation.
The location of the crash near homes also raised concern for residents in Manzawu. The available reports, however, put all fatalities aboard the aircraft and recorded no injuries among people on the ground.
Tshisekedi orders investigation
President Félix Tshisekedi expressed sorrow over the accident and offered condolences to the victims’ families and the FARDC. He directed that a thorough investigation be carried out to determine the cause and circumstances of the crash.
Authorities are expected to examine the reported mechanical difficulties, the attempted landing at Kenge’s old airstrip and the other circumstances surrounding the fatal journey.
The investigation is intended to establish why the aircraft went down. Until those findings are available, the reported sequence of technical problems and an attempted landing remains a preliminary account of the accident.
