Malawi Vice President's Plane Goes Missing

A plane carrying Malawi's Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine others has gone missing.

A statement from the Office of the President in Malawi reported that the aircraft, operated by the Malawi Defense Force, vanished from radar after departing the capital city, Lilongwe, on Monday morning.

Efforts by aviation authorities to re-establish contact with the aircraft have been unsuccessful since it disappeared from radar screens, according to the statement from the Office of the President and Cabinet.

Chilima, 51, was aboard the Defense Force plane that took off from Lilongwe at 9:17 AM local time (7:17 AM GMT). 

The aircraft was scheduled to land at Mzuzu International Airport at 10:02 AM. The search and rescue operations are currently ongoing.

President Lazarus Chakwera has ordered an immediate search and rescue mission after aviation officials were unable to reach the plane.

Upon receiving news of the incident, Chakwera canceled his planned trip to the Bahamas to oversee the search efforts.