28 Feb 2017

Police in Tutume have confirmed an incident in which a helicopter which crashed yesterday evening around 6pm next to a shopping mall.

Superintendent Jerry Halahala confirmed the incident which involved three passengers and a pilot.

Though he could not confirm the names of those involved, it is widely believed that the damaged orange R44 RAVEN II chopper whose pictures were circulating on social media circles last night belongs to Chobe born aircraft designer Mr Mogomotsi Gaebepe.

Three of the passengers were treated for minor injuries while the pilot remains hospitalised with injuries that are not life threatening.

Supt Halahala said the crash occurred while the pilot was attempting to take off.

While he could not immediately confirm the cause of the crash, unconfirmed reports indicate that the pilot hit an electric cable while attempting to take off.

This is not the first time that Gaebepe has crashed an aircraft.

In 2005, he crashed his own self-built aircraft named Desert Wolf in Kachikau while attempting to land on a football pitch, sustaining serious injuries in the process.

Gaebepe is well known for designing and building the aircraft from scratch without any aviation or engineering training in 2004.

The P2 million worth helicopter which he bought in February 2014 through self-fund raising mostly used it for scenic helicopter rides over Kasane.

Mr Gaebepe was bestowed the science and technology award by the Botswana National Youth Service in 2007 for single handedly constructing an aircraft from scratch with zero aviation or engineering qualification.

He is now a qualified commercial pilot and has recently opened his business of scenic viewing. ENDS