Bill Clinton’s Plane Has Engine Problem — Forced To Land In Tanzania
An airplane carrying former president Bill Clinton had a problem with one of its four engines today (Wednesday) and was forced to make an unscheduled landing in Tanzania.
According to CBSNews, Bill Clinton landed at a fueling station in Dodoma to repair the malfunctioning engine. Fortunately, the engine trouble was not a serious threat to Bill Clinton or anyone else on the plane. The aircraft was repaired within 45 minutes and was back in the air immediately after. Nobody was injured.
The incident with Bill Clinton’s airplane was originally reported as an “emergency landing,” according to ABC News. But a spokesman for former president Bill Clinton dismissed the idea that the plane was ever in any serious trouble. He reassured that Clinton was safe, even during the unexpected landing.
“There was never an emergency,” he explained to ABC News. “No one was ever in the least amount of danger.”
While it may be true that the engine was repaired quickly and without any complications, it does raise questions about what could have happened to Bill Clinton if the plane hadn’t been near the Dodoma fueling station when it needed to make a landing. No information about what was wrong with the engine has been released.
According to NBC News, the pilot of Clinton’s plane followed standard protocol by making an unscheduled landing in Dodoma. The pilot shut off the problematic fourth propeller engine to prevent further complications. One of Clinton’s aides claimed that the plane could have flown safely to its destination on the three working engines.
The malfunctioning plane was a Canadian “turboprop Dash 7.” Bill Clinton was on course from Iranga, Tanzania to Lake Manyara for a Clinton Foundation charity tour. He was riding with his daughter Chelsea to help promote agriculture, education, environmental issues and health around the world. After Tanzania, Bill Clinton will be traveling to Kenya, Liberia and Morocco to continue the tour project.
After the plane safely made it to Iringa, Bill Clinton visited a farm to see the progress the Clinton Foundation has contributed to soil improvements and corn growth. He also stopped by a local school where the students were learning about agriculture on a plot of land set aside for demonstrations. The Tanzanian locals greeted Clinton and addressed him as “Mr. President.”
Despite the good work of the Clinton Foundation, some opponents of Hillary Clinton have accused the family of giving foreign governments who donated to their foundation special treatment in the State Department. Read more here.
