A Beechcraft 1900D aircraft (registration 5XD-RHB) carrying oil workers crashed on takeoff from Unity oilfield airstrip in South Sudan on 29 January 2025, killing 20 of the 21 people on board, including the two pilots. The flight was operated by Light Air Services for Eagle Air and was en route to Juba.
Among the victims were two Chinese nationals and one Indian. The plane, reportedly destroyed, belonged to Greater Pioneer Operating Company (GPOC), a consortium that includes China National Petroleum Corporation and Nile Petroleum Corporation. The cause of the crash remains unknown.
South Sudan has seen multiple fatal air crashes in recent years, including a 2018 accident that killed 19 people and a 2015 cargo plane crash in Juba that resulted in dozens of fatalities.
By André Orban @Aviation24
