Eniola Olayemi
More facts have emerged on the reasons behind the plane crash that occurred in Kabba area of Kogi State which had Nigeria’s number two man, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, on board.
Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) yesterday released the report of the helicopter crash involving Agusta Westland W 139 Caverton Helicopters, which flew Vice President to Kabba in Kogi State, The Nation reports.
It attributed the February 2, 2019, crash of the chopper marked with registration number 5N – CML to effects of a brownout generated during its landing in a dry dusty environment.
It said Caverton should have carried out risk assessment test at the Kaaba Stadium before the flight.
Brown out in aviation parlance means a condition generated during landing in a sandy and dusty environment.
The chopper accident operated by Caverton Helicopter occurred at Kaaba Stadium in Kogi State. It flew Osinbajo, his entourage and three crew members.
The chopper was manufactured in 2012.
AIB Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer, Akin Olateru , at a media briefing at its headquarters at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, said though the investigation into the crash is ongoing, it has , however, issued two safety recommendations to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and the operator, Caverton Helicopters Limited.
Olateru said the NCAA should issue advisory circular to helicopter operators on the effects of brown out and how to mitigate its effects.
The second safety recommendation, Olateru said, is for Caverton Helicopters to carry out proper risk analysis and assessment before operating flights into unapproved landing pad.
He said the final report on the accident will be released in few months.
In another case, three persons were feared dead and four others sustained various degrees of injuries in a fatal road crash off a military checkpoint in Ngelzarma town in Fune Local Government Area, Yobe state.
The fatal road crash which occurred at about 3pm on Tuesday involved a Golf Wagon and a trailer which led to the death of the three occupants of the golf car including the driver.
The two vehicles had a head-on collision with some eyewitness blaming the golf car driver of approaching the trailer head-on and crushed it, leading to the death of the three passengers with four other sustaining injuries.
The injured passengers were evacuated and taken to the general hospital Damagun including a woman and her baby whose husband is among the dead.
The trailer and the golf car were travelling on different directions. While one was from Kano, the other was going to Maiduguri, Borno state.
