Seven people were killed, five of them Americans, when a tourist helicopter crashed in a remote area of northern Kenya on 19 August 2026.
The Eurocopter EC130 B4, registered 5Y-GYM, was carrying six passengers and one pilot when it came down near Kirish, close to Mount Ololokwe in Samburu County. The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority said the accident occurred at approximately 09:13 local time while the helicopter was flying from Loisaba Conservancy to the Ewaso Nyiro area. The operator, Lady Lori Helicopters, described the flight as running from Suyian Conservancy to Ololokwe.
The aircraft was operating a charter carrying guests of luxury safari company &Beyond. βWe can confirm that on the morning of August 19, an aircraft registered as 5Y-GYM, carrying &Beyond guests, crashed near Kirish, close to Mt. Ololokwe in Samburu County, Kenya,β the company said in a statement.
Lady Lori Helicopters confirmed the aircraft was one of its own. βLady Lori Helicopters is deeply saddened to confirm that one of our aircraft, registered 5Y-GYM, was involved in an accident,β the operator said. βOur deepest sympathies are with the guests, crew, their families and loved ones, and all those affected by this tragic accident.β
The US State Department confirmed that five US citizens were among those killed. βWe can confirm the deaths of five US citizens in a helicopter crash in Samburu County, Kenya,β a spokesperson said. βThe US Embassy is in touch with local authorities and is providing consular assistance.β
Among the six passengers were Michele Sensi-Contugi, director of Ecuador's National Intelligence Center; his wife, Stephany Hollihan Vasconez, a dual US-Ecuadorian citizen; and JosΓ© Alberto SuΓ‘rez, a senior Telemundo executive based in Florida. The Kenya Red Cross joined a multiagency response to the site.
The EC130 B4 is a single-engine light helicopter widely used for tourism and charter work, particularly for sightseeing operations where its shrouded fenestron tail rotor makes it comparatively quiet. Kenya's conservancies in Samburu and Laikipia are served extensively by helicopter charter, which moves guests between remote airstrips and camps across terrain that would otherwise take many hours by road. Mount Ololokwe, a prominent flat-topped massif rising sharply from the surrounding plain, is a well-known landmark in the area.
No cause has been established. Kenyan authorities are expected to lead the investigation, and it will be some time before a preliminary account of the sequence of events is available. Until then, any explanation of what happened near Kirish on Wednesday morning would be speculation.
Sources: AeroTime. Featured image: AI-generated by AviationShop. By Elena Vargas.
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