Kenya's army chief, 10 others killed in helicopter crash. Image credit: RFI
NAIROBI, April 18 (Epicstorian) – the Kenya’s military leader, General Francis Ogolla, and 10 other people were killed shortly after their helicopter took off on Thursday.
This was announced by President William Ruto hours after the crash.
According to him, the military helicopter came down a few minutes after departing Cheptulel Boys Secondary School in West Pokot County, and was been on a visit to troops deployed in northwest Kenya to combat endemic cattle-rustling.
Two soldiers survived the crash and were in hospital, he said, adding that an air investigation team had been sent to discover the cause, Reuters reported.
“Our motherland has lost one of her most valiant generals,” Ruto told a news conference. “The demise of General Ogolla is a painful loss to me… A distinguished four-star general has fallen in the course of duty, and service to country.”
Having being in the Kenyan Defense Force since 1984, his military professional profile indicates that General Francis Ogolla was previously the head of the Kenyan air force; and was later made the deputy army chief before he was prompted to military chief last year, 2023, by Ruto.
Also, Ogolla trained as a fighter pilot with United States Air Force and as an instructor pilot at the Kenya Air Force (KAF), according to a Defence Ministry profile.
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