Recovery teams have arrived in Namibia following the LAM Mozambique Airlines Flight TM470 that crashed on November 29 in leaving 33 dead.
In a statement on December 1, LAM says: “This morning, the recovery teams from LAM and Kenyon International Emergency Services arrived in Namibia and are making their way to the accident site. The Namibian and our recovery teams have begun to search for and recover the victims’ remains and their personal effects.”
The victims still need to be positively identified, however it has been confirmed that of the 27 passengers, 10 were from Mozambique, nine from Angola, five from Portugal, one each from France, China and Brazil. The crew was made of a captain, first officer, chief cabin attendant, two cabin attendants and a technician.
A memorial service will be announced for the victims at a later stage.
Because the accident took place in Namibia, it will lead the investigation into the crash. Civil Aviation Authorities from Mozambique, Angola, Brazil and the US National Transportation Safety Board will also participate in the investigation.
“Like everyone who has been affected by this terrible accident, we also would like to know what happened. However, it is important that we all give the investigators the time and space to do their work without interference or prejudice. In terms of international aviation law, LAM may not comment on the investigators’ work. Similarly, we cannot engage in speculation on likely or possible causes as this would be unhelpful and could be seen as an attempt to unfairly influence or pre-empt the investigation,” LAM says.
