8km visibility was compatible With landing at Mzuzu, Airport officer tells inquiry

An air traffic information officer at Mzuzu Airport has told the parliamentary committee investigating the June 10, 2024 plane crash that the official weather report showed visibility of 8 kilometres, conditions he said were compatible with landing under visual flight rules.

Moyo, who has worked at Mzuzu Airport for 16 years, said the official weather report indicated 8 kilometres visibility, drizzle, fog in the vicinity and overcast conditions.

Asked whether an aircraft could land at Mzuzu under such conditions, Moyo said it could under visual flight rules.

The testimony has raised questions about the weather information available to the aircraft carrying former Vice President Saulos Chilima and eight others before it changed course towards Ekwendeni.

Moyo said the aircraft was expected at Mzuzu at about 10:02 local time but contacted him around 10:12.By then, he said, his own observation showed visibility of about 5 kilometres to the east, south and west of the airport.

The committee questioned whether the 5km figure was an official meteorological measurement.

Moyo explained that the 8km visibility figure came from the Meteorological Department, while the 5km figure was his personal observation of the conditions around the airport.

He said he communicated both the official weather information and his own observation to the pilot.Moyo later told the committee that the pilot indicated the aircraft was proceeding towards Ekwendeni, about 20 nautical miles north of Mzuzu.

The committee also questioned Moyo about his evidence that conditions later deteriorated to the point where he could no longer see the end of the runway, which is about 1.3 kilometres long.

Moyo said the deterioration occurred after his initial communication with the aircraft. He added that he attempted to contact the pilot again to provide an updated weather observation but was unable to establish communication.

The inquiry further heard that no special weather report, known as a SPECI, was issued by the Meteorological Department despite the reported changes in conditions.

Moyo said the official weather report available to him had been issued at 08:00 GMT and that he communicated with the aircraft at about 08:12 GMT.

Committee members also raised differences between Moyo’s observations and meteorological records presented to the inquiry, which indicated visibility of about 9 kilometres around 10am local time and 8 kilometres at 11am.

Moyo maintained that weather conditions around Mzuzu can change rapidly, with visibility improving or deteriorating within minutes.

Another issue raised during the hearing was the absence of an en-route weather report from a competent meteorological authority.

The committee also questioned whether Moyo was authorised under aviation regulations to provide his own weather observations to pilots.

He was asked to produce the relevant International Civil Aviation Organisation documents and said he would provide them later.The testimony has therefore raised questions beyond whether weather conditions at Mzuzu were poor.

The committee will have to establish what role Moyo’s 5km observation played in the aircraft’s decision to proceed towards Ekwendeni, given that the official weather report showed 8km visibility, which Moyo said was compatible with landing under visual flight rules.

It will also have to determine what authoritative weather information was available to the crew along the route, particularly in the absence of an en-route report from a competent meteorological authority.

Moyo further told the committee that after communication with the aircraft was lost, he informed relevant authorities and requested the activation of search and rescue procedures.

His testimony has shifted attention from whether the weather was simply bad to what weather information was communicated to the crew and whether it influenced the decision to change course.