The Nigerian Air Force has commenced a comprehensive investigation into Monday’s crash of its ATR-42 aircraft in Igbokoda, Ondo State, as recovery teams battle difficult swampy terrain to retrieve the wreckage and remains of the 25 victims.
According to a military source, the military activated a board of inquiry after the crash, while the NAF spokesman, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, said the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke, ordered the investigation.
The source said the Superintendent of Standards and Evaluation traditionally heads the board.
“A board of inquiry has been set up. Immediately after an aircraft crashes, we activate the board of specialists.
“The Superintendent of Standards and Evaluation is automatically the chairman of the board. It’s a permanent appointment.
“They have to be on the ground as they are recovering those things, because part of the recovery process forms part of the investigation,” the official stated.
Recovery efforts have been slowed by thick vegetation and the depth of the swamp, with the aircraft’s main fuselage still submerged.
A private construction firm has deployed floating heavy equipment to clear a path for recovery teams, while the Nigerian Navy has deployed sonar equipment to scan the mapped underwater area.
Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa also ordered the deployment of two amphibious swamp machines to improve access to the crash site.
The military source said, “I don’t think they’ve recovered all the bodies yet. The aircraft is deeply submerged in the swamp, and we are currently clearing the area.
“A construction company brought a floating buggy, or whatever it’s called. So, that’s what is clearing that path.”
The source added, “Until we clear that part, we can look for what to use to lift the fuselage out of that swamp. It is going to take time before we can recover the bodies. The clearing operations remain ongoing at the site.”
Ejodame said the NAF would release the outcome of the investigation after the preliminary report, explaining that the service follows established aircraft investigation procedures.
“The most important thing is that the Chief of Air Staff has directed a comprehensive investigation and the outcome of that one will be communicated. Whether it’s a board, committee, or a one-man army,” he said.
The NAF spokesman also clarified confusion over the number of people aboard the aircraft, following earlier reports of higher casualties.
He said, “For air traffic controllers, when they normally communicate ‘25 souls on board inclusive of seven crew’, it is minus the seven — the seven is in the 25. It doesn’t mean you add.”
He further explained, “In this case, there were 25 souls on board: five were active crew, then two were passengers, but they are crew.
“So, there are seven crew on board reported, but only five were flying at that time. The other two were on board as passengers.” The Air Force has confirmed that 25 people died in the crash.
Meanwhile, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, and Aneke have agreed to deepen cooperation between the civil and military aviation sectors following the tragedy.
The plan includes a joint committee involving the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and the NAF on airworthiness, certification, training and other safety matters.
Keyamo said, “It is one country, one people. When disaster happens, it affects everybody.
“There were civilians in that air crash, and when there’s an air crash in civil aviation too, there can be military personnel. And so, it is important that we cooperate in the area of safety.”
“We have decided that we will cooperate in terms of capacity building,” he added.
The minister also offered Air Force personnel access to training programmes organised by civil aviation authorities, saying, “There is no reason why we cannot take some names from the Air Force.
“We have a lot of training we go for, so there is no reason why we cannot.”
Keyamo described the proposed partnership as “a kind of cross-pollination and symbiotic relationship” aimed at improving aviation safety, while Aneke said both sectors had a shared responsibility to protect Nigerians.
Aneke said, “We have both agreed that we need to move the aviation industry, whether military or civil, to a higher level.
“We are serving the same government; we are protecting the same Nigerians. So we are just a blend of each other.”
The investigation comes as former DSS director Mike Ejiofor called for a broader review of military aviation operations, maintenance and aircraft condition, saying the frequency of military air crashes warranted closer scrutiny.
