The devastating Air India crash in Ahmedabad that claimed 241 lives has triggered painful memories of one of Africa’s greatest sporting tragedies, the 1993 Zambia air disaster, which wiped out the country’s golden generation of footballers.

The Indian tragedy, though unrelated, triggered an emotional connection and national trauma that befell Zambia over three decades ago.

On Thursday, tragedy struck when an Air India passenger plane en route to London Gatwick crashed moments after takeoff from Ahmedabad, western India, Reuters reports.

The aircraft, which was carrying 242 people, went down in a residential area, killing 241 passengers and crew, including several British, Portuguese, Canadian, and Indian nationals.

Astonishingly, only one person survived the crash. At least eight people on the ground, including four medical students, were also confirmed dead, taking the death toll even higher.

According to the BBC, the aircraft lost signal less than a minute after departure, leading to speculation about possible mechanical failure or pilot error.

Investigations are ongoing to confirm this.

The Indian crash brought back harsh memories of Zambia’s darkest sporting moment.

On April 27, 1993, a Zambian Air Force DHC-5 Buffalo aircraft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean shortly after taking off from Libreville, Gabon, BBC Football reports.

The flight was en route to Senegal, where the national team was scheduled to play a FIFA World Cup qualifying match.

On board were 18 players, the head coach, support staff, and crew, 30 people in total. All lives were lost.

An official investigation revealed the pilot mistakenly shut down the wrong engine after one caught fire.

Pilot fatigue and faulty instruments further contributed to the crash.

The tragedy was particularly painful because the Chipolopolo, as the Zambian team is known, was one of the most promising squads in African football.

Having defeated Italy 4–0 at the 1988 Olympics, with a hat-trick from Kalusha Bwalya, the African Footballer of the Year that same year, the team was eyeing a place in the 1994 FIFA World Cup and another strong run at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that an investigation has begun into the cause of the ill-fated Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad, and this could take months or even years to identify due to the complex nature.

As usual, aviation experts have shared their views on what they believe could have gone wrong.

Philip Baum, a visiting professor of aviation security at Coventry University, says early evidence points to the fact that the accident was caused by a system or multiple systems failures.

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Proofreading by Omoleye Omoruyi, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng