Air Tanzania Runway Overrun
Contact photographer Ammann Martin
What: Air Tanzania de Havilland Canada DHC-8-311Q en route from Kigoma to Dar es Salaam via Tabora
Where: Kigoma
When: Apr 9th 2012
Who: 35 passengers and 4 crew
Why: Air Tanzania was taking off from Kigoma when it suffered an engine failure. Two passengers were hospitalized with shock but there were no other injuries reported.
Pilots rejected takeoff.
The jet overran the runway. Local news reported that the pilots “hit a pothole” which prevented the takeoff. It is not unusual for us to end up with conflicting reasons behind accidents. We do not know if the runway was soft after recent rains. It is up to the official investigation to reveal what happened. We are just delighted that the pilots landed the plane with no loss of life or serious injury.
The right engine separated, and the right wing incurred some damage; the nose gear collapsed. The plane has been written off with substantial damage. Unless Air Tanzania tells us otherwise, we believe this is the last de Havilland Canada DHC-8 in the fleet.
