Malawi announces state funeral and 21 days of mourning for vice president killed in a plane crash

By GREGORY GONDWE
Associated Press

BLANTYRE, Malawi (AP) — The Malawi government says that Vice President Saulos Chilima will be honored with a state funeral after he was killed along with eight other people in a plane crash. President Lazarus Chakwera had already announced 21 days of national mourning on Tuesday, when the wreckage of the small military plane carrying Chilima and a former first lady was discovered in a mountainous area in the north of the country. There were no survivors. The government also clarified Wednesday that there were nine people on board when the plane crashed, not 10 as initially announced by the president.