An Embraer EMB-120 Brasilia with 30 people aboard made an emergency landing at Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro International Airport (JRO) after reportedly hitting a zebra during takeoff from Serengeti National Park.
The aircraft was headed from Seronera Airstrip to Zanzibar on October 4, 2026. Unable to fully extend the landing gear, the pilots opted to land at Kilimanjaro, where video published by The Tanzania Times shows it sliding along the runway. All 26 passengers and four crew members escaped without injury.
The Tanzania Times cited an airports authority statement confirming that the aircraft struck a “hoofed animal” during departure. Local reports identified it as a zebra and said the animal was killed.
The aircraft, registered 5H-HLL, sustained substantial damage. Reports differ on whether one or both main landing gear failed to extend.
Kilimanjaro Airport remained closed for about five hours while crews cleared the aircraft from the runway. Flights resumed at 16:30 local time, The Tanzania Times reported.
News reports identified the airline as Zanzibar-based Sindbard Air, while Tanzania’s civil aircraft register lists Angelic Handlers Company Limited as the aircraft’s operator and South Sudan’s Ministry of Interior as its owner.
Tanzanian accident investigators have opened an inquiry.