Zimbabweans Killed in Air Crash Named

Source from:  Zimbabwe Standard (Harare) 10/19/2004

THE crash of an MK Airlines Boeing 747 cargo jet airliner at Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada claimed the lives of six Zimbabweans and a South African - all crew members. It also widowed a bride of five weeks. Senior Captain Dave Lamb was married on September 11 at Harare's Wild Geese Lodge, Teviotdale. His widow, Mrs Joanne "Jo" Lamb (formerly Buckley) is a well-known Harare-based chiropodist. Captain Lamb was about 40 years old. It was his first marriage. It is understood Mrs Lamb was on a short holiday in Zambia when news of the tragedy broke. Her late husband's employers flew her back to Zimbabwe. Second captain Mike Thorneycroft (about 60) was divorced from Caroline Thorneycroft, a former Zimbabwean public relations consultant, journalist and broadcaster. Also killed were Steve Hooper, the flight engineer, Pete Lander the first officer and Chris Strydom the loadmaster. At the time of going to Press it was not immediately clear in what capacity a sixth Zimbabwean, Gary Keogh, was travelling. The commercial cargo airline's chief representative in Harare, retired Group-Captain John Mussell's telephones at the MK offices in Princess Drive, Newlands remained unanswered from early Saturday morning while his Avondale home number was constantly engaged. But aviation experts believe Keogh might be "dead-legging" back to Africa (travelling to join another flight after an extended layover in North America). The seventh crewmember killed was South African Mario Zahn, the ground engineer. MK airlines was founded by Zimbabwean born Mike Kruger in 1990, flying mainly Boeing 747 cargo jets mostly registered in Gabon. Kruger - a former Air Force of Rhodesia helicopter and Canberra pilot is the nephew of legendary Captain Jack Malloch who founded Affretair (now in liquidation) as a sanctions-busting operation during UDI. Malloch was said to be on first name terms with long-time Gabonese dictator President Omar Bongo and the West African nation bought much Rhodesian beef and tobacco from the rebel Ian Smith government despite United Nations sanctions between 1965 and 1980. Malloch died in the mysterious crash of a World War II Spitfire jet fighter over Goromonzi in 1982. Enditem