1 killed in Mauritanian military plane crash

A Mauritanian military officer has been killed after an aircraft crashed near the northern city of Aoujeft, military sources have confirmed. The jet, which was on a test flight after undergoing maintenance, crashed around an hour after takeoff. Sources told Arabstoday that a pilot and a mechanic were on board when the aeroplane caught fire. They added that both men had activated their emergency parachutes, but the mechanic's equipment malfunctioned, resulting in a fatal fall. The pilot was transferred to Nouakchott aboard a military helicopter after fracturing his leg and an arm. In a dramatic development, it was confirmed that the pilot, Ahmed Talib ould Ahmida, is the brother of the army officer who accidentally shot Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz on October 13 last year. Sources said that the aircraft, an Embraer EMB 312 Tucano, had been part of the Mauritanian army's purchase of a batch of four in 2012. Tucanos, which come fitted with machine guns and small rocket-launchers, were expected to be used as part of surveillance operations on suspected terrorists. The crash is Mauritania's second such incident in less than a year. In July 2012, seven passengers were killed when a military aircraft crash-landed in Nouakchott. News later emerged that the plane had been chartered by the Canadian Gold Cooperation, Kinross Tasiast, which is based at a site 320 kilometres north of the capital.