NAIROBI, Kenya – The investigation into the Mwihoko plane crash that killed six people earlier this month has gone international, with the aircraft’s black box recorders flown to the United States for forensic analysis.
The August 7 accident involved an AMREF Flying Doctors Cessna Citation 560XLS, which went down three minutes after takeoff from Wilson Airport, slamming into a residential building in Mwihoko, Kiambu County.
All four people on board — two pilots, a doctor, and a nurse — died, along with two residents on the ground. Two others sustained serious injuries.
Transport Cabinet Secretary Davis Chirchir said the jet, registered as 5Y-FDM, was en route to Hargeisa, Somaliland, on a medical evacuation mission to airlift a critically ill child.
The victims were identified as Captain Muthuka Munuve, Captain Brian Kimani Miaro, Dr. Charles Mugo Njoroge, and nurse Jane Rispah Aluoch Omusula.
Emergency crews from multiple agencies responded to the crash, which sparked a fire that destroyed both the aircraft and part of the residential building near A.I.P.C.A. Ngatho Church.
International investigation
Kenya’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Department (AAID) is leading the inquiry but has roped in international agencies under International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) rules.
The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), representing the aircraft’s State of Design and Manufacture, has taken a central role and dispatched an accredited investigator to work with Kenyan authorities.
Canada’s Transportation Safety Board (TSB), responsible for the design of the plane’s engines, has also joined the probe, with engine-maker Pratt & Whitney Canada providing technical support. ICAO was formally notified.
Investigators recovered the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) from the wreckage. These black boxes have been shipped to the NTSB laboratory in the United States for decoding.
“The joint FDR and CVR readout and analysis exercise will be conducted in the last week of September and the first week of October 2025 with the participation of AAID investigators, Accredited Representatives, and observers,” Chirchir said in a statement.
AMREF Flying Doctors and the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA) have also deployed observers to the process.
Awaiting answers
The exact cause of the crash remains undetermined. Investigators are compiling data from the recorders, on-site inspections, and witness statements to piece together the chain of events.
A preliminary report is expected later this year to update the public and the aviation industry on the progress of the probe.
