Plane crash remains still in Namibian morgues

Ten families, who are among those that lost loved ones when a Mozambican plane crashed in the Bwabwata National Park at the end of November last year, are yet to decide whether to repatriate their remains. This was confirmed by Nampol Major-General James Tjivikua yesterday. A total of 33 people lost their lives in the crash and so far 16 victims have been positively identified. Tjivikua confirmed that the remains of six victims had been sent to their home countries, while the relatives of the other ten had not made up their minds. He would not be drawn into revealing when the rest of the charred remains of the passengers of the ill-fated flight TM470 would be positively identified. The plane crashed while en route from Mozambique to Angola’s capital Luanda. Tjivikua said: “It is unknown when the rest of the victims will be identified, as the process is now extremely slow and delicate. I trust the competent forensic team should be able to deliver the news soon.” He also would not reveal whether any victims had been laid to rest in Namibia, saying this is against aviation laws. This is despite alluding to this in January, by saying that this was one of the options given to the families after the National Forensic Science Institute (NFSI) identifies the remains. “We cannot provide any information of the victims and what has been done with any of the bodies, as only their families and governments can do so. We will reveal how far the forensic investigations have gone in a scheduled press conference next week,” Tjivikua added. Director of Aircraft Accident Investigation Erikson Nengola told Namibian Sun that a team of investigators had returned two weeks ago, after travelling to Mozambique to probe the pilot’s personal life. This followed revelations that he may have been responsible for the crash. Nengola said the team had spent a week in Mozambique, gathering personal information about Captain Herminio Dos Santos Fernandes, including whether the airline had been aware of his problems, which included financial and marital woes. According to Nengola all information gathered by the team has now been integrated as part of the main investigations, to determine the cause of the air crash. “This type of information is not for the public domain. I cannot divulge any direct information at this stage, as this is also crucial in the ongoing investigations,” said Nengola. Fernandes had also allegedly refused allow his co-pilot back in the cockpit, moments before the Embraer 190 hit the ground.