Aircraft carrying Malawi vice president and nine others goes missing

FILE PHOTO: Malawi's Vice President Saulos Klaus Chilima arrives at a polling station in Lilongwe, Malawi May 21, 2019 in this still image obtained from REUTERS TV video. REUTERS TV/Eldson Chagara/via REUTERS/File Photo

BLANTYRE, Malawi (Reuters) -An aircraft carrying Malawi's vice president, Saulos Klaus Chilima, and nine others has gone missing, the southern African nation's presidency said on Monday.

Chilima, 51, was aboard a military aircraft that left Lilongwe, the capital, at 09:17 a.m. (0717 GMT), Malawi's Office of the President and Cabinet said. It said search and rescue operations were ongoing.