20 people die in South Sudan plane crash

A small aircraft carrying oil workers crashed in South Sudan’s Unity State on Wednesday morning, killing 20 people, according to an official.

The plane went down at the Unity oilfield airport while en route to the capital, Juba, said Gatwech Bipal, Unity State’s information minister. Among the victims were two Chinese nationals and one Indian.

The aircraft was carrying employees of the Greater Pioneer Operating Company (GPOC), a consortium that includes China National Petroleum Corporation and South Sudan’s state-owned Nile Petroleum Corporation.

Bipal did not provide further details on the cause of the crash. Initial reports indicated 18 fatalities, but Bipal later confirmed that two survivors had succumbed to their injuries. One person remains alive.

South Sudan has experienced multiple air disasters in recent years. In 2018, a plane crashed while flying from Juba to Yirol, killing at least 19 people. Three years earlier, a Russian-built cargo plane carrying passengers crashed shortly after takeoff from Juba, leaving dozens dead.

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