At least 19 people, including foreigners, died in South Sudan on Wednesday when a small aircraft carrying oil workers from the Unity oilfields of Rubkona County in Unity State to Juba Airport crashed at 10:30 a.m., State Information Minister Gatwech Bipal told Radio Tamazuj.
“The plane crashed and killed 19 people, including two pilots and two Chinese nationals,” Bipal told Radio Tamazuj by phone from Bentiu.
According to the local official, the aircraft, with registration 5X-RHB and hired by the GPOC oil firm, carried a total of 21 people on board, including two pilots.
Minister Bipal explained that authorities confirmed that 17 of the deaths were South Sudanese and two were Chinese nationals.
Two of the survivors, a South Sudanese and an Indian man, are in critical condition and have been taken to a hospital for treatment, the state minister said.
“The plane was carrying oilfield employees who were going on leave after spending 28 days at their workplace. Details will follow later after we receive more information from the GPOC [Greater Pioneer Operating Company] and the aviation company,” he concluded.
Meanwhile, Eng. Saleh Akot, the Acting Director of Juba International Airport, confirmed to Radio Tamazuj that a small aircraft, chartered by the oil company GPOC, crashed shortly after takeoff from Unity State.
“The flight departed this morning from Unity State, and while returning to Juba, the aircraft crashed shortly after takeoff. There were 19 passengers and 2 crew members on board. We are still in the process of gathering more information,” Akot stated.
Akot further noted that the aviation authority has sent a team to the crash site to investigate the cause of the incident.
Several crashes have occurred in South Sudan in recent years. In August 2024, a cargo aircraft caught fire after landing at Pieri Payam in Uror County, Jonglei State. The two crew members on board suffered injuries and were treated at a local clinic.
Last March, a military cargo plane carrying supplies to Yida in the Ruweng Administrative Area crashed at the Yida airstrip. In February 2024, a passenger aircraft operated by Africano Company, which was transporting returnees from the conflict in Sudan, crash-landed at Malakal airport. No injuries were reported.
In April 2023, a cargo plane carrying passengers crash-landed at Juba International Airport, with all passengers emerging unharmed. That followed a 2021 incident in which a Let L-410 Turbolet, a South Sudan Supreme Airlines flight to the Yuai airstrip, crashed at Pieri again with no casualties.
The deadliest crash occurred in August 2020, when a cargo plane crashed into a farm in the Kemeru area shortly after taking off from Juba International Airport. Eight people died, while a single passenger survived with injuries.
South Sudan’s challenging road infrastructure has made air transport a vital lifeline for many, contributing to the high frequency of aviation incidents.