A Nigerian Air Force plane flying from Benin City to Lagos crashed Monday in southwestern Ondo state, killing all 25 passengers and seven crew members aboard, Reuters reported, in one of the deadliest air disasters in the country in recent years.
President Bola Tinubu confirmed there were no survivors and expressed “profound sadness,” extending condolences to the families of those on board. He directed the Air Force to open a thorough investigation into the cause of the crash to prevent future accidents, according to a statement from his office.
The twin-engine ATR-42, tail number NGR 931, was on a routine mission when air traffic controllers lost contact with it at 8:13 a.m. GMT, or 9:13 a.m. local time, Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo said. The wreckage was later found near a naval base in Igbokoda, where search and rescue teams were deployed.
What We Know So Far
Keyamo said controllers tried repeatedly to raise the aircraft on the radio without success before learning it had crashed. Preliminary information put 25 passengers and seven crew members aboard, for a total of 32. The Air Force confirmed the plane belonged to the service and said it had activated an immediate search and rescue operation in coordination with other authorities and emergency agencies. Air Force spokesperson Ehimen Ejodame said further details would be released in due course.
Locals told the Associated Press the aircraft came down near a river and that part of it was sinking in the water. “We heard something like a thunder strike,” said Akinbulejo Pius, a witness. He said the plane cleared some trees before it crashed and that residents found human remains, clothing and shoes at the site.
The Nigerian military has used the ATR-42 for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance as well as for carrying personnel and supplies, the AP noted.
Differing Accounts
Early reports left the toll unclear. The AP’s first account said there was no immediate word on casualties, and the Air Force’s own statement, as quoted by Punch Nigeria, did not give a casualty count or describe the condition of those aboard. The confirmation that all 32 people died came later, in Tinubu’s statement as reported by Reuters.
The time of lost contact appears differently across accounts but refers to the same moment. Reuters gave 8:13 a.m. GMT and the aviation ministry said 9:13 a.m., which are the same time in Greenwich Mean Time and Nigerian local time. The AP, citing Keyamo, described the plane as disappearing from radar at around 9 a.m. Reports also characterized Igbokoda differently, with the AP calling it a riverside town and Reuters a coastal one.
What Officials Are Saying
Tinubu’s office, in a statement signed by Special Adviser on Information and Strategy Bayo Onanuga, said the president mourns the Air Force personnel who died and ordered a thorough investigation. Tinubu said he was briefed by the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke.
Keyamo said he had spoken with Aneke and pledged the aviation ministry’s cooperation and help with rescue work. He noted that his ministry and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority have no regulatory authority over military aircraft.
Why This Matters
The crash is among the deadliest in Nigeria in recent years, Reuters said, and it involved a military aircraft that falls outside the civil aviation regulator’s oversight, as Keyamo pointed out, so the Air Force is leading the inquiry. Investigators have not stated a cause, and officials have not said how the aircraft came down so close to a naval base.
What Happens Next
The Air Force has begun the investigation Tinubu ordered and said search and rescue efforts are continuing. It has not released the names of those killed or said when its findings might be made public.
Reporting drawn from Reuters, the Associated Press and Punch Nigeria
