On 7 August 2025, an AMREF Flying Doctors Cessna Citation XLS, registration 5Y-FDM, was involved in a fatal accident shortly after departing Wilson Airport at 14:17 local time. The aircraft was en route to Hargeisa, Somalia, to collect a patient for medical evacuation. Approximately three minutes after take-off, contact was lost with the control tower. Attempts to reach the crew via VHF and satellite phone were unsuccessful.
On board were four crew members — a Captain, First Officer, Doctor, and Nurse. Two members of the local community at the crash site also lost their lives. There were no survivors.
The aircraft’s cockpit voice recorder (CVR) and flight data recorder (FDR), initially reported missing, have been recovered and will assist the ongoing investigation. Some parts of the FDR remain missing, and AMREF Flying Doctors continues to work with the local community to locate them. Residents with any information are urged to come forward.
Editor’s note: Our thoughts are with the AMREF Flying Doctors team and the families of the loved ones lost during this difficult time.
