Ten European tourists eight Hungarians and two Germans, along with a Kenyan pilot, were killed on Tuesday when a light aircraft crashed in Kenya’s coastal region while en route to the Maasai Mara game reserve.
The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority said the plane, operated by Mombasa Air Safari, was flying from the resort town of Diani on the Indian Ocean coast to Kichwa Tembo in the Maasai Mara when it went down in a forested area of Kwale County at about 8:30 a.m. local time (05:30 GMT).
Smoke billowed from the wreckage as security officials cordoned off the crash site. Personal belongings and clothes of the victims were seen scattered across the forest floor and hanging from nearby trees.
Kenyan authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the crash, while Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán sent condolences to the victims’ families.
Hungary’s Foreign Minister, Péter Szijjártó, confirmed that the eight Hungarians killed included two families, a family acquaintance, and two minors. Two German nationals also died in the crash.
“Once we receive the official information on the identities of the victims, the next of kin will be notified,” Szijjártó said in a live broadcast on YouTube.
Mombasa Air Safari said it is cooperating fully with investigators to determine the cause of the accident.
