Rigathi Gachagua arrived in Emurua Dikirr aboard aircraft 5Y-LJM, the same Cessna that carried Edwin SifunaThe aircraft had previously been flagged by a security analyst who linked it to a runway excursion incident in DR Congo in July 2025Gachagua’s use of the plane drew sharp reactions online, with some Kenyans drawing political conclusions about the two politicians
Former deputy president Rigathi Gachagua touched down in Emurua Dikirr on Friday, August 21.
Edwin Sifuna and Rigathi Gachagua used the same plane weeks apart. Photos: Edwin Sifuna, Rigathi Gachagua and Wahome Thuku.
Source: Facebook
Gachagua was aboard a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan registered as 5Y-LJM, the same aircraft that had transported Edwin Sifuna days earlier.
Did Sifuna, Gachagua use same plane?
Footage shared on Instagram showed Gachagua disembarking from the aircraft, which observers quickly identified as the same plane involved in a controversy that erupted online earlier in August.
The debate over 5Y-LJM began on August 12, when security information analyst Kiyo Nganga, who runs Armistice Security Consult International, posted a photograph showing Sifuna and his team stepping off the aircraft at Ithookwe Airstrip in Kitui.
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Nganga said the image prompted him to cross-reference the plane against his firm’s aviation incident database.
His findings raised alarm: the same aircraft had been involved in a runway excursion in Bunia, DR Congo, on July 27, 2025.
Two people were on board during the incident, both sustaining minor injuries, while the plane suffered substantial damage that included a bent nose landing gear and damage to the outer left wing. Initial findings pointed to mechanical failure.
Nganga also catalogued 13 Cessna-related incidents recorded in Kenya between 2020 and 2025, among them a mid-air collision over Nairobi National Park in March 2024 that claimed two lives.
Another was a January 2025 crash onto the Malindi-Mombasa highway that killed three people on the ground, and an October 2025 Mombasa Air Safari flight in which all 11 passengers perished near Kwale.
His database, he said, covers over 20 incidents across Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, DRC, Uganda, Tanzania, and Mozambique over six years.
The analyst’s warning triggered a public dispute between himself and a trained pilot, drawing widespread attention from Kenyans on X.
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Gachagua’s arrival on the same plane drew immediate commentary, with several Kenyans reading political meaning into the shared aircraft.
Frank Ron wrote:
“The point here is it’s the same plane. Means Sifuna and Riggy G are the same.”
Oliver Wafula echoed that sentiment, posting:
“Same sponsor.”
Gicheru Mburu questioned the choice of transport, writing:
“I thought someone said they shouldn’t use aircraft.”
Wycliffe Nyandieka referenced the earlier dispute, noting:
“Khalif Kairo affirmed that these Cessna planes are safer than your cars.”
Paul Kariuki offered a technical perspective, stating:
“Fixed-wing planes are safer.”
Source: TUKO.co.ke