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- Aviator Daily Briefing — Sunday, August 30th, 2026 [Breaking News Headlines] • Antonov An-28 Shot Down in DR Congo; Four Dead in FARDC Strike • SkyCare Air Ambulance Jet Exits Runway at Las Vegas Airport [In Other News] • Harry Reid Westwind Runway Incident: FAA Probes Tire Blowout • NTSB Vice Chair Michael Graham Announces Early Retirement • LaGuardia Deadly Collision: FAA Findings Show Controllers Left Early • NTSB: Radio Dead Zone, White House Construction Caused Marine One Near-Miss Antonov An-28 Shot Down in DR Congo; Four Dead in FARDC Strike MINEMBWE, Democratic Republic of Congo — Aug. 27, 2026 — An Antonov An-28 cargo aircraft linked to the AFC/M23 rebel coalition was shot down Thursday morning near Minembwe in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, killing all four people on board, according to the Aviation Safety Network and local media reports. The aircraft came down over the village of Bikuba in the Fizi territory of South Kivu province. Local reports, unconfirmed by aviation authorities, suggest the plane may have carried the registration 9T-TAB and was operating a route from Bukavu to Minembwe at the time of the incident. Samy Badibanga, the territorial administrator of Fizi, said soldiers from the Forces armées de la République démocratique du Congo (FARDC) neutralized the aircraft using a military drone as it performed landing maneuvers. Other local sources cited by Actualité.cd, however, suggest the plane was brought down by a ground-launched missile of unknown origin. The aircraft was destroyed on impact. No survivors were reported. FARDC officials claim the An-28 was transporting military equipment and food supplies in support of M23 rebels and their regional allies. Sources within the Twirhaneho-AFC/M23 coalition counter that the flight was carrying medicines and humanitarian supplies destined for the region. Photos purportedly showing wreckage from the crash have circulated on social media, consistent with an An-28 previously observed operating under AFC/M23 control in the area, which is backed by Rwanda, according to the Aviation Safety Network. The incident reflects an intensifying aerial dimension to the conflict in the South Kivu highlands. Reports from Critical Threats and Radio Okapi indicate a surge in UAV use by both government forces and rebel coalitions in recent months. No formal investigation by DR Congo's civil aviation authority has been announced. Congolese authorities are treating the event as a military engagement rather than a civil aviation accident. Source: Aviation Safety Network (ASN Wikibase ). This is a developing story; details may change as more information becomes available. SkyCare Air Ambulance Jet Exits Runway at Las Vegas Airport LAS VEGAS — Aug. 28, 2026 — A Canadian-registered IAI 1124A Westwind II operated by SkyCare Air Ambulance suffered a runway excursion during takeoff at Las Vegas-Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) early Friday, collapsing its left main landing gear. No injuries were reported among the six people on board. The aircraft, registration C-GIAW, was approximately 35 seconds into its takeoff roll on runway 26R at around 1:30 a.m. local time when it began veering left at a ground speed of 146 knots, according to ADS-B data. The jet exited the runway at approximately 130 knots, crossed a taxiway, and came to rest in the grass. The left main gear collapsed in the process. Local media outlets including FOX5 Vegas and Travel and Tour World reported the aircraft had been preparing for a return flight to Toronto Pearson International Airport. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), however, issued a brief statement characterizing the event differently — describing a Westwind blowing a tire and veering off the runway while taxiing after landing. The FAA confirmed six occupants were aboard and said the agency will investigate. Runway 26R was temporarily closed while the aircraft was removed from the scene; it has since reopened. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) had not released a preliminary report or opened a public docket as of publication time. SkyCare is a Canadian air ambulance and charter provider specializing in long-range medical evacuations. Aviation Safety Network records indicate the same airframe, C-GIAW, was involved in a separate non-fatal incident at Winnipeg–James Armstrong Richardson International Airport on July 11, 2026. The IAI Westwind II is a legacy twin-engine business jet frequently converted for medevac operations. Historical accident data for the type includes several runway excursions associated with high-speed rejected takeoffs and landing gear failures. The FAA and NTSB are investigating. This story will be updated as additional information becomes available. Harry Reid Westwind Runway Incident: FAA Probes Tire Blowout The Federal Aviation Administration has opened an investigation into a runway excursion at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas after a Westwind 24 blew a tire and veered off the taxiway following an otherwise safe landing early Friday morning. The FAA confirmed the incident occurred at approximately 1:45 a.m. local time Aug. 28, 2026. Six people were on board at the time. No information regarding injuries or the extent of aircraft damage has been released, and investigators have not yet identified a cause for the tire failure. Authorities reported no prolonged airport shutdowns as a result of the excursion. FAA airport status updates from Aug. 29, 2026, indicate Harry Reid International remained fully operational. The incident follows other recent runway-related events at the facility, including a British Airways tire loss in January, though the FAA has offered no indication of systemic runway safety concerns. Further technical data on the airport is available at Harry Reid International Airport (KLAS). NTSB Vice Chair Michael Graham Announces Early Retirement The National Transportation Safety Board is facing another leadership transition after Vice Chair Michael Graham announced his retirement Aug. 28, 2026. Graham's statutory term was set to run through Dec. 31, 2030, making his departure an early exit from the five-member federal safety panel. The announcement extends a period of staffing instability at the agency. In early 2025, the NTSB acknowledged it had been operating with only three members following the December 2024 departure of former Vice Chair Bruce Landsberg, a longtime safety advocate and former AOPA president who left after completing an extended term. The board is currently led by Chair Jennifer Homendy, whose term runs through 2029. The back-to-back departures come as the NTSB manages a high volume of complex investigations spanning aviation, highway, rail and marine transportation modes. Aviation industry analysts have cautioned that the loss of experienced board members can slow the agency's ability to issue timely safety recommendations — findings that carry significant weight with the FAA and aircraft manufacturers. The Biden and Trump administrations have each faced pressure to fill board vacancies promptly to maintain investigative capacity. LaGuardia Deadly Collision: FAA Findings Show Controllers Left Early The Federal Aviation Administration revealed Aug. 27, 2026, that two air-traffic controllers abandoned their posts roughly one hour before their shifts ended on the night of a fatal runway collision at LaGuardia Airport. The agency is now seeking to terminate both employees, characterizing the early departures as serious misconduct and timecard fraud. According to the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg, the absences left only two personnel in the tower during a period of elevated traffic — a staffing level that may have violated FAA protocols prohibiting the consolidation of air and ground control positions before midnight. The remaining controllers were forced to absorb a workload that typically requires additional personnel. The FAA's action follows a March 22, 2026, collision in which an Air Canada Express regional jet struck an airport fire truck on the runway, killing both pilots. The NTSB continues its investigation into probable cause, but the personnel findings amplify systemic concerns about controller fatigue and chronic understaffing across the national airspace system. A 2024 FAA-commissioned panel had previously warned that merging tower positions during overnight shifts significantly elevates the risk of human error — a warning the agency's own workforce appears to have underscored in the worst possible way. NTSB: Radio Dead Zone, White House Construction Caused Marine One Near-Miss A preliminary National Transportation Safety Board report has identified a radio communication failure and construction-related operational changes as the primary factors in a loss of separation between Marine One and a commercial airliner Aug. 4, 2026, near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). Ongoing construction of a new ballroom at the White House forced officials to relocate Marine One's departure point from the South Lawn to the Ellipse, creating a radio dead zone between the temporary launch site and DCA's tower frequency. Pilots aboard the presidential helicopter — carrying President Donald Trump en route to Andrews Air Force Base — attempted to alert controllers twice, but both transmissions were garbled or unheard. A planned backup relay system also failed to bridge the gap. With communication lost, a tower controller cleared Envoy Air Flight 3742, an Embraer E170 bound for Pensacola, Fla., for takeoff on Runway 19. The two aircraft came within approximately 0.82 nautical miles laterally and 700 feet vertically — breaching the 1.5-nautical-mile horizontal buffer required for presidential flight operations. The FAA said the aircraft were not on a collision course, as the airliner was climbing above the helicopter's altitude. No injuries or damage were reported. The NTSB investigation remains ongoing. You can get the latest aviation news at https://aviatordb.com