Final flight: Global leaders tragically killed in aircraft crashes

Barthelemy Boganda, first Prime Minister of the Autonomous Central African Republic

From the end of the 19th century until 1958, the CAR was one of the colonies of France.

Barthelemy Boganda became the first prime minister of the autonomous republic of the Central African Republic within the French Community.

Initially a Roman Catholic priest, Boganda entered politics with a strong commitment to social justice and the betterment of his people. He founded the Movement for the Social Evolution of Black Africa in 1949, which was pivotal in advocating for the rights and independence of the peoples of French Equatorial Africa.

Unfortunately, on March 29, 1959, he died in a plane crash, just before the Central African Republic officially became independent from France.

Dag Hammarskjöld, UN Secretary General

Former Swedish diplomat Dag Hammarskjöld became UN Secretary General in 1953.

In 1960, the government of Congo, which had recently gained independence from Belgium, asked the UN to help combat growing violence in the country.

Hammarskjöld sent UN peacekeepers to the Congo - a decision that in September 1960 was condemned by the Soviet leadership, demanding the resignation of the secretary general.

In September 1961, Hammarskjöld flew to the Congolese province of Katanga. The plane crashed near the city of Ndola, in what was then Northern Rhodesia (now Zambia).

Rene Barrientos, President of Bolivia

General Barrientos came to power in a coup d'état in 1964.

During Barrientos's reign, the country's armed forces suppressed any opposition movements, including the uprising led by Che Guevara. The Bolivian army captured and executed Che Guevara in October 1967.

President Barrientos passed away in April 1969 after the helicopter he was traveling in crashed in Cochabamba province. Despite an official investigative commission determining that the aircraft struck a power line, rumors persist in Bolivia that the helicopter was shot down.

Francisco Carneiro, Prime Minister of Portugal

The Prime Minister of Portugal, a politician who rose after the Carnation Revolution of 1974, has vigorously pursued economic and political reforms since 1976.

On October 5, 1980, the Democratic Alliance, which included Carneiro's party, won the elections.

Francisco Carneiro passed away on December 4^th, 1980, in a crash involving a light twin-engine Cessna 421 Golden Eagle. Although the investigation indicated that the plane was in poor technical condition, numerous rumors and conspiracy theories have circulated regarding the politician's death.

Omar Torrijos, President of Panama

While in power, he pursued a populist policy and achieved agreement from the United States on the gradual transfer of sovereignty over the Panama Canal Zone into the hands of Panama itself.

Torrijos enjoyed the support of the United States, as he was an ardent opponent of communism. In July 1981, his plane crashed in bad weather conditions.

Samora Machel, President of Mozambique

He led the liberation movement and became the first president of independent Mozambique in 1975.

In 1986, the presidential plane crashed into a mountain over South African territory, near the border with Mozambique and Swaziland.

The investigation commission determined that the crash was caused by pilot error.

Muhammad Zia Ul Haq, President of Pakistan

Came to power following a military coup and was recognized for backing the anti-Soviet mujahideen insurgency during the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

On August 17, 1988, he died in a plane crash. The investigative commission suggested that sabotage was the most probable cause of the crash.

Juvenal Habyarimana, President of Rwanda

He held the presidency for 20 years and implemented policies targeting the Tutsi ethnic minorities.

On April 6, 1994, he was killed when his plane, which was also transporting Burundi's President Cyprien Ntaryamira, was struck by rockets. The assassination of both presidents precipitated the genocide of ethnic Tutsis in Rwanda, followed by the toppling of the ethnic Hutu government.

Boris Trajkovski, President of Macedonia

The president of Macedonia passed away in February 2004 when his Beechcraft Super King Air 200 crashed into a mountain in Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the precise reasons for the crash still unclear.

Trajkovski entered politics following Macedonia's independence. His tenure saw escalating tensions between ethnic Macedonians and ethnic Albanians. He was a well-liked politician, securing about 90% of the vote in the 1999 elections.

Lech Kaczynski, President of Poland

The President of Poland passed away on April 10, 2010, in a plane crash near Smolensk while en route to Katyn to participate in memorial ceremonies for Polish officers executed by the Soviet leadership at the start of World War II.

The presidential Tu-154 was below the glide path during landing, struck trees with its wing, disintegrated in the air, and crashed to the ground. Along with the president, the plane carried prominent Polish politicians, top military officials, and notable public and religious figures.

Ebrahim Raisi, President of Iran

On May 19, 2024, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian died in a helicopter crash in the mountainous East Azerbaijan Province.

The crash also claimed the lives of Tabriz Imam Mohammad Ali al-Hashem, East Azerbaijan provincial head Malek Rahmati, the helicopter crew, and a security guard.

It is suspected that one of the three helicopters in the Iranian President's motorcade might have collided with a mountain peak due to poor weather conditions, though no official cause of the crash has been confirmed.

Prior to the accident, the delegation had been engaged in talks with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev at the border between the two nations.