Plane crash in the Congo again

There must be something the Congo DRC is doing wrong. The Antonov 26 plane crash on 4th October was eerily familiar. We have been down this road before. Barely had the dust settled from the crash, Remy Henry Kuseyo Gatanga, the transport Minister was sacked. Same as our own former aviation minister Professor Borisade. But the Congo is unique, half of the crashes in Africa since 1998 have occured in this country of Patrice Lumumba. The ingredients as the past 11 air crashes in the country are the same:

1. Oct. 4, 2007: An Antonov 26 cargo plane crashes into a Kinshasa neighborhood shortly after takeoff, killing at least 50 people.

2. Aug. 26, 2007: An overloaded Antonov 12 plane crashes in the eastern region of Katanga, killing 14 people.

3. Aug. 3, 2006: An Antonov 28 crashes into a mountain and then tumbles into a valley in eastern Congo, killing 17 people.

4. May 25, 2005: An Antonov 12 crashes shortly after takeoff in eastern Congo, killing all 26 people on board.

5. May 5, 2005: An Antonov 26 hits a treetop as it lands near the central city of Kisangani and slams into the ground, killing 10 people.

6. Nov. 29, 2003: An Antonov 26 plows into a crowded market after failing to take off from the central city of Boende, killing 20 people on the plane and 13 on the ground.

7. May 8, 2003: The rear door of an Ilyushin 76 bursts open at 33,000 feet, hurling passengers to their deaths. More than 100 are presumed killed.

8. Aug. 12, 2000: An Antonov 26 crashes after experiencing technical problems trying to land in the city of Tshikapa. Thirteen bodies are found; another 14 people are presumed dead.

9. Sep. 12, 1997: A plane crashes into the Minembwe mountains in eastern Congo, killing all 20 people on board.

10 June 6, 1997: A Bazair Airlines passenger plane crashes near the northeastern town of Irumi, killing all 30 people on board.

11. Jan. 8, 1996: An Antonov 32 crashes seconds after takeoff from Kinshasa's airport, skidding across a busy street and plowing into a crowded open-air market, killing about 300 people.

Old aircraft, inadequate safety equipment in airports, and poor safety oversight duplicating what used to be obtained in Nigeria. Nigeria however, has just received a 45 million USD credit line from the World Bank to improve the Civil Aviation Authority's compliance with ICAO SARPs (Standard and Recommended Practices), instead of firing Gatanga, Joseph Kabila should have sought ways to strengthen the regulatory body’s oversight capacity. After all Gatanga just weeks ago banned all Antonov planes from operating in the Congo , only to reverse his decision evidently due from political interference. Therein is a lesson: there will soon be yet another crash in the Congo DRC and it will not be the fault of the Russian pilots or the Aviation regulatory body, but the fault of the government. The only lesson here for Nigeria is that we have come a long way from where we once were, but then again to achieve the very best possible safety standards, we must continue to strive. May their souls rest in peace.