Malawi: Chakwera Signed Off Chilima's Fatal Flight, Mkandawire Testifies

The parliamentary inquiry into Malawi's June 2024 military plane crash on Monday opened with a stark claim: former president Lazarus Chakwera authorised the use of the Malawi Defence Force (MDF) Dornier aircraft that later crashed, killing vice-president Saulos Chilima and eight others.

The allegation came from former Defence Minister Harry Mkandawire, who told MPs that he had been informed by then-MDF Commander General Paul Valentino Phiri (retired) that the authorisation came from the top.

"I got information from the Commander that he had got clearance from the Commander-in-Chief (the President) to allow Chilima to use the Dornier," Mkandawire said.

He was responding to a question from committee member Felix Njawala, the Mwanza Central MP from the UTM Party.

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Mkandawire did not verify the authorisation directly with Chakwera, leaving a critical step in the chain of command unconfirmed.

Flight logs show the aircraft departed Lilongwe at 9.17am on 10 June, diverted due to poor weather, and never reached Mzuzu.

Mkandawire, already in Nkhata Bay for the funeral of former Attorney General and Cabinet minister Ralph Kasambara, said he was informed mid-morning that the plane was turning back.

He was among the first senior officials to reach the crash site in Chikangawa Forest the following day, where all nine deaths were confirmed.

A second line of testimony introduced further uncertainty. Luckie Sikwese, former Principal Secretary in the Office of the Vice-President, told MPs that Cabinet minister Richard Chimwendo Banda was never on the passenger list -- despite last-minute enquiries from then-Secretary to the President and Cabinet Colleen Zamba about securing him a seat.

The MDF had capped the aircraft at eight passengers and three crew after removing seats to transport a casket the previous day.

Sikwese's account contradicts earlier reports suggesting Chimwendo Banda withdrew from the trip at the last moment.

The discrepancy adds to a growing set of unresolved questions around authorisation, passenger selection and communication in the hours leading up to the fatal flight.