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4 July 2025
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UPDF helicopter crashes at Mogadishu, five deaths reported, Somalia
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A Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) Mi-24 helicopter detached to the African Union (AU) mission in Somalia crashed at Mogadishu’s Aden Abdulle International Airport on Wednesday, 2 July 2025, with five fatalities. A UPDF statement has it the rotorcraft (AUO-015) crashed about 200 metres east of the airport’s north ramp. Five were killed and another three of the helicopter’s eight occupants survived the incident but with severe injuries and burns, said Ugandan military spokesperson, Felix Kulayigye. The impact of the crash had caused munitions on board to detonate, destroying nearby structures and injuring three civilians, he said.
The helicopter was conducting a routine combat escort mission when it crashed carrying unspecified munitions. The crash, as per the UPDF statement, triggered detonation causing “significant damage” to nearby structures and injuring three civilians.
The three-man flight deck crew of pilot, co-pilot and flight engineer survived the crash but suffered serious injuries including burns and were taken to the AUSSOM (AU Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia) Sector 1 Level II Hospital for treatment.
A joint emergency response team of firefighters from Mogadishu International Airport and the United Nations (UN), along with AUSSOM explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) personnel, is managing the scene and supporting rescue operations.
An official investigation to determine the cause of the crash is underway.
Ugandan troops are part of an 11 000-strong African Union (AU) force helping the Somali government fight the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab group, which has been waging an insurgency in Somalia for more than two decades.
The head of the Somali Civil Aviation Authority, Ahmed Maalim, told the BBC that the helicopter had come down in the airport’s military section after flying in from the Balidogle airbase in the Lower Shabelle region, north-west of Mogadishu.
Last September, the Ugandan military lost a transport helicopter while flying from Mogadishu to Baledogle Airfield. All four peacekeepers on board survived that incident, according to the military.
The Ugandan crash comes a month after Burundi lost one of its two AB 412 helicopters deployed in Somalia with AUSSOM. The aircraft (BAF-1135/AUO-012), experienced a technical malfunction and made a forced landing near Hawadley, 50 km from Mogadishu, on 2 June. The helicopter was transporting Burundian peacekeepers from the recently evacuated Hawadley village after heavy flooding forced their withdrawal.
According to AUSSOM, the aircraft experienced mechanical failure during the operation, prompting the pilots to carry out an emergency landing in a location near Al-Shabaab-controlled territory. All personnel onboard fled the scene and were later transferred to a nearby military base. However, the abandoned aircraft was subsequently captured by Al-Shabaab fighters.
Source: Defence Web, Al Jazeera
The helicopter was conducting a routine combat escort mission when it crashed carrying unspecified munitions. The crash, as per the UPDF statement, triggered detonation causing “significant damage” to nearby structures and injuring three civilians.
The three-man flight deck crew of pilot, co-pilot and flight engineer survived the crash but suffered serious injuries including burns and were taken to the AUSSOM (AU Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia) Sector 1 Level II Hospital for treatment.
A joint emergency response team of firefighters from Mogadishu International Airport and the United Nations (UN), along with AUSSOM explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) personnel, is managing the scene and supporting rescue operations.
An official investigation to determine the cause of the crash is underway.
Ugandan troops are part of an 11 000-strong African Union (AU) force helping the Somali government fight the al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab group, which has been waging an insurgency in Somalia for more than two decades.
The head of the Somali Civil Aviation Authority, Ahmed Maalim, told the BBC that the helicopter had come down in the airport’s military section after flying in from the Balidogle airbase in the Lower Shabelle region, north-west of Mogadishu.
Last September, the Ugandan military lost a transport helicopter while flying from Mogadishu to Baledogle Airfield. All four peacekeepers on board survived that incident, according to the military.
The Ugandan crash comes a month after Burundi lost one of its two AB 412 helicopters deployed in Somalia with AUSSOM. The aircraft (BAF-1135/AUO-012), experienced a technical malfunction and made a forced landing near Hawadley, 50 km from Mogadishu, on 2 June. The helicopter was transporting Burundian peacekeepers from the recently evacuated Hawadley village after heavy flooding forced their withdrawal.
According to AUSSOM, the aircraft experienced mechanical failure during the operation, prompting the pilots to carry out an emergency landing in a location near Al-Shabaab-controlled territory. All personnel onboard fled the scene and were later transferred to a nearby military base. However, the abandoned aircraft was subsequently captured by Al-Shabaab fighters.
Source: Defence Web, Al Jazeera