Lilongwe, Malawi – June 10, 2024: The Office of the President and Cabinet of Malawi has issued an urgent press release regarding the disappearance of a Malawi Defense Force aircraft carrying the Vice President, the Right Honourable Dr. Saulos Klaus Chilima, and nine other individuals. The aircraft, which departed from Lilongwe on Monday, June 10, 2024, at 09:17 hours, was scheduled to land at Mzuzu International Airport at 10:02 hours but has failed to make its scheduled landing.

Efforts by aviation authorities to establish contact with the aircraft since it went off the radar have been unsuccessful. The Commander of the Malawi Defense Force, General Valentino Phiri, has briefed His Excellency Dr. Lazarus McCarthy Chakwera, the President of Malawi, on the situation. In response, President Chakwera has canceled his planned departure to the Bahamas and has directed all regional and national agencies to launch an immediate search and rescue operation to locate the missing aircraft.

The public has been assured that updates will be provided as new information is established. The Office of the President and Cabinet, led by Secretary Colleen Zamba, is overseeing the coordination of the search efforts and ensuring that all necessary measures are taken to address the incident.

This event has sparked widespread concern across the nation, with many anxiously awaiting news of the Vice President and the other passengers on board. The thoughts and prayers of the nation are with the families of those missing as the search and rescue operations continue.