Kenya’s defense chief, Francis Ogolla and nine other high-ranking officials were killed in a military helicopter accident in a remote section of the country on Thursday, according to President William Ruto.
The president, who had called an emergency meeting of the National Security Council after learning of the disaster, said nine other “gallant military personnel” on board were also slain, with two survivors.
He stated that the Kenya aviation Force has despatched an aviation investigation team to determine the cause of the crash, which occurred in Elgeyo Marakwet county, around 400 kilometers (250 miles) northwest of the capital Nairobi.
The helicopter crashed shortly after takeoff from Chesegon, where he and his entourage had been visiting a school, Ruto said.
Ruto announced three days of mourning from Friday, with official flags flying at half mast.
He said Ogolla, 61, had left Nairobi on Thursday morning on an air force Huey helicopter to visit troops deployed in the North Rift area in Operation Maliza Uhalifu (Operation End Crime in Swalihi), and other sites.
Kenyan authorities have long battled insecurity in the Rift Valley region, with armed bandits and cattle rustlers rampant.
Ogolla was appointed Chief of the Defence Forces by Ruto in April last year after a stint as deputy.
Ruto told journalists last May that he appointed Ogolla despite him being among those who tried to overturn his narrow election win against opposition leader Raila Odinga in 2022.
A trained fighter pilot, Ogolla joined the KDF in April 1984, rising through the ranks to command the Kenyan Air Force in 2018, a post he held for three years.
