Pius Adesanmi, Nigeria-born Canadian professor, was among the passengers on ill-fated Ethiopian Airlines flight that crashed on its way to Nairobi, Kenya, on Sunday morning.

Pius Adesanmi

Seven British, seven French, eight Italian and 18 Canadian nationals are among the 157 victims of an Ethiopian Airlines plane crash on Sunday.

Thirty-two Kenyan, nine Ethiopian, eight U.S. and eight Chinese nationals were also among the dead, Ethiopian Airlines Chief Executive, Tewolde GebreMariam, told journalists.

None of the 149 passengers and eight crew members on board the Boeing 737 that crashed en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi survived, the airline said.

The 157 passengers were of 35 different nationalities, with one person travelling on a UN passport, the airline said.
Flight ET 302 crashed near the town of Bishoftu, about 50 kilometres south-east of the Ethiopian capital.

This handout photograph released from the Twitter account of Ethiopian Airlines on March 10, 2019, shows a man inspecting what is believed to be wreckage at the crash site of an Ethiopia Airlines aircraft near Bishoftu, a town some 60 kilometres southeast of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. – A Nairobi-bound Boeing 737 crashed six minutes after an early-morning takeoff from Addis Ababa on March 10, killing all 149 passengers and eight crew on board, Ethiopian Airlines said as world leaders offered condolences to distraught next-of-kin. People holding passports from 32 countries and the UN were on board the plane which ploughed into a field just 60 kilometres (37 miles) southeast of Addis Ababa, the carrier’s CEO Tewolde GebreMariam told journalists in the capital, lamenting this “very sad and tragic day.” (Photo by HO / TWITTER ACCOUNT OF ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES / AFP) /

The Boeing 737 took off at 8:38 am (0538 GMT) from Bole International Airport and lost contact a few minutes later, according to the airline.

Shortly after take-off, the senior pilot, who had been working for the airline since 2010, sent a distress call and was given clearance to return, GebreMariam said.

The airline had bought the new plane in November, according to GebreMariam.
The plane had flown only 1,200 hours since its purchase and was last maintained on Feb. 4.

The plane had arrived in Addis Ababa on Sunday morning from Johannesburg, South Africa, before taking off for Nairobi a few hours later, according to Ethiopian Airlines.

https://newlive.vanguardngr.com/2019/02/ethiopian-airlines-to-operate-all-women-functioned-flight-to-oslo-on-iwd/

Boeing said it is “deeply saddened to learn of the passing of the passengers and crew on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a 737 MAX 8 airplane.”

A Boeing technical team was prepared to provide technical assistance at the request and under the direction of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board, Boeing said in a statement.

Ethiopian Airlines said it set up a committee with Boeing, the national civil aviation authority, the national transport authority and other experts to conduct forensic investigations and identify the victims.

According to information provided by Boeing and Ethiopian airlines, the Ethiopian airlines plane is the same model as a Lion Air aircraft that crashed off the coast of Indonesia in October, killing 189 people.

The Lion Air plane was also a newly purchased aircraft and had crashed 11 minutes after take-off.
The Ethiopian Airlines Group chief executive said he “deeply regrets the fatal accident,” the airline said on Twitter.
GebreMariam, who had travelled to the scene of the crash, expressed his “profound sympathy and condolences” to the families of all victims, the statement read.

“The Office of the PM, on behalf of the Government and people of Ethiopia, would like to express its deepest condolences to the families of those that have lost their loved ones on Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737.

https://newlive.vanguardngr.com/2019/03/people-of-35-nationalities-among-157-dead-in-ethiopian-airlines-crash/

“Airlines Boeing 737 on regular scheduled flight to Nairobi, Kenya this morning,” the office of Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, said on Twitter.

German President, Frank-Walter Steinmeier said he “was shocked to hear of the terrible crash.”

“The deaths of so many people on board fill me with deep sadness,” Steinmeier added.
French President, Emmanuel Macron, sent his condolences to all victims and their families. “I share their sadness,” said Macron.

The cause of the crash remained unknown on Sunday.

Adesanmi flew on a Canadian passport. He posed with the passport in the last picture he posted on Facebook on Saturday morning.

His last message on Facebook read: “If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me – Psalm 139:9-10”

https://newlive.vanguardngr.com/2019/01/flight-operations-begin-at-abuja-airports-new-terminal/

Herewith the latest breakdown of the nationalities of most among the 157 people aboard Nairobi-bound Ethiopian Airlines ET 302 which crashed shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa on Sunday morning.

The list of 35 nationalities was tweeted by Ethiopian Airlines, with no distinction made between the 149 passengers and eight crew.

The count is not final.

– Africa –

Kenya 32

Ethiopia 9

Egypt 6

Morocco 2

Djibouti 1

Mozambique 1

Rwanda 1

Sudan 1

Somalia 1

Togo 1

Uganda 1

Nigeria 1

– Americas –

Canada 18

United States 8

– Asia –

China 8

India 4

Indonesia 1

Nepal 1

– Europe –

Italy 8

France 7

Britain 7

Germany 5

Slovakia 4

Russia 3

Austria 3

Sweden 3

Spain 2

Poland 2

Belgium 1

Ireland 1

Norway 1

Serbia 1

– Middle East –

Israel 2

Saudi Arabia 1

Yemen 1

– Other –

UN passport 1

– TOTAL –

150