A small aircraft travelling from Kenya’s coastal town of Diani to the Maasai Mara National Park crashed early Tuesday morning, with all 12 people on board feared dead, according to the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority (KCAA).
In a statement released by the KCAA, the authority confirmed that the aircraft went down at approximately 5:30 a.m. local time (0230 GMT) while en route to Kichwa Tembo, a private airstrip serving one of the region’s premier safari destinations.
“The aircraft had 12 persons on board,” the KCAA said, adding that relevant government agencies had been dispatched to the crash site to investigate the cause of the accident.
The statement did not provide immediate details on the identities of the passengers or the operator of the aircraft.
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Emergency response teams and aviation safety investigators were reported to have reached the crash site within hours, as efforts continued to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The crash adds to a string of aviation accidents in the country. In August 2025, a light aircraft operated by the medical charity Amref Flying Doctors crashed on the outskirts of Nairobi, killing six people and injuring two others.
The latest incident has renewed concerns about the safety of small aircraft operating on domestic routes connecting Kenya’s popular tourist destinations.