Veteran Air Zimbabwe pilot Captain Danai Taruvinga dies in car accident

HARARE – An Air Zimbabwe pilot who flew into a hailstorm and lost his licence almost six years ago has died in a car accident today according to a report filed by a Nehanda Radio Citizen Reporter.

Veteran pilot Captain Danai Taruvinga who was driving a Mazda 3 vehicle was involved in an accident with a twin cab belonging to Irvines at the corner of Godfrey and Porter streets in Waterfalls, Harare.

The scene of the accident was next to the house of the late nationalist and Zanu Ndonga leader Rev Ndabaningi Sithole. Taruvinga was rushed to hospital but was confirmed dead around 1am.

Taruvinga was a member of the Falcon Golf Club in the area and according to one of his colleagues he had just left the gate to his house and failed to see the car moving on the main road due to the high grass.

Captain Taruvinga was in 2007 downgraded by the Civil Aviation Authority of Zimbabwe from captain to first officer for 12 months after flying into a hailstorm despite having a functional weather radar in Zambia.

The incident caused extensive damage to the Boeing 737 aircraft. But, although he was demoted for a period, Air Zimbabwe management in 2010 “requested under unclear circumstances that he resumes flying after his licence had lapsed.

The board chair Jonathan Kadzura said Taruvinga was a qualified pilot and “a Zimbabwean who must use the chance to create opportunity for his children”.

In May that year Taruvinga recruited his son Nicholas as a civilian pilot – possibly without letting other recruiters know of their relationship, noted an audit report.

The committee then recommended that Taruvinga either revert to the post of full-time flight operations manager in line with his job specification or relinquish the post and become a full-time pilot.