Fact Check: Did Smuggled Crocodile Cause Plane Crash in the Congo?

On August 25, 2010, an aircraft flying in the Democratic Republic of Congo crashed into a house, killing nearly everyone onboard.

The aircraft came crashing down just 1.2 miles away from its final destination, at about 1 p.m, Simple Flying reported. All but one of the 21 passengers aboard died.

The tragedy was put down to a lack of fuel at the time. But this has not been confirmed by authorities. Upon inspecting the wreckage, investigators could not find evidence of a lack of fuel. If there had been, there likely would have been evidence of an explosion.

There are other theories and rumors surrounding this aircraft, and how it crashed.

The Claim

Since the incident occurred in 2010, media outlets have reported a testimony from the sole survivor of the incident. The story, originally reported in African magazine Jeune Afrique, was then picked up elsewhere.

The survivor of the tragedy—whose identity is not known—claimed in 2010 that it was not a lack of fuel, but a crocodile on the loose that caused the plane to crash.

The crocodile had purportedly been smuggled on board the plane by another passenger, Jeune Afrique reported.

The passenger had intended to sell the reptile, which had been concealed in a duffel bag. That is, until it escaped and went on a rampage inside the plane.

The escaped reptile terrified other passengers who jumped from their seats. They then gathered to one side of the plane in order to avoid it.

An air hostess working on the flight then tried to find safety in the cockpit—other passengers followed suit.

This caused the weight in the plane to become unevenly distributed, causing it to become unbalanced.

Pilot Danny Philemotte and the first officer Chris Wilson then lost control of the aircraft. This caused the plane to crash just outside of its destination.

According to the magazine, the crocodile initially survived but was later killed by authorities.

The Facts

The claims that a crocodile caused this aircraft to crash are not new, but, since 2010, they have not been confirmed or verified.

Jeune Afrique, the original source for this claim, cited an "investigation" by the Professional Committee of Air Carriers (CPTA), but caveated further in the article that the CPTA said "it has not commissioned an official report on this accident."

Though it is possible that the officials were misleading in denying the existence of the report, the statement somewhat undermines the veracity of a story that is based on one source.

Experts have also poured cold water on the objectively bizarre claim, without dismissing it.

At the time the news first broke, Tim Atkinson, a British investigator at the Department for Transport who had been looking into the incident, said that although the crocodile story could not be ruled out, it was still "extremely unlikely," The Guardian reported in 2010.

Atkinson said that previous reports also stated that passengers ran to the front of the plane before it crashed.

In 2010, former airline captain John Cox also told ABC News that such an incident is possible, especially as it occurred in a remote setting.

"You could run the center of gravity forward where it wouldn't be controllable. Twenty people at 200 pounds each, it's possible," he said at the time.

Deadly plane crashes have occurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo before.

Experts have previously raised concerns about the safety regulations for aircraft flying there, the BBC reported in 2019.

But as of August 30, 2022, there still have not been confirmed accounts or conclusions from an official investigation about what happened on board the flight on 25 August 2010.

Newsweek has reached out to the CPTA for comment.

The Ruling

Unverified.

While aviation experts have said the story is possible, the claims have not been corroborated by authorities or investigators.

The testimony from the sole survivor of the crash was given 12 years ago, and as there were no other witnesses, it didn't appear to provide sufficient ground for officials to confirm a crocodile as being the cause of the crash.

FACT CHECK BY NEWSWEEK