A small aircraft carrying oil workers crashed in South Sudan’s Unity State on Wednesday morning, killing 20 people, according to officials. The aircraft, which was en route to Juba, went down shortly after takeoff from the Unity oilfield airport.
Unity State Information Minister Gatwech Bipal confirmed that the plane was transporting employees of the Greater Pioneer Operating Company (GPOC), a consortium that includes China National Petroleum Corporation and the state-owned Nile Petroleum Corporation. Among the victims were two Chinese nationals and one Indian.
Initial reports stated that 18 people had died, but Bipal later confirmed that two of the injured survivors had succumbed to their wounds, bringing the total fatalities to 20. Only one person survived the crash.
The cause of the accident remains unclear, and authorities have launched an investigation. Air disasters are frequent in South Sudan due to poor infrastructure and reliance on air travel. In 2018, a plane crash in Yirol killed 19 people, while in 2015, a Russian-built cargo plane crashed after takeoff from Juba, causing dozens of deaths.
Officials continue to assess the situation as investigations into the latest aviation tragedy unfold.