……….The aircraft disappeared from radar shortly after taking off from Benin for Lagos, with the wreckage later located near the Naval Base in Igbokoda.
A military aircraft carrying 32 people has crashed near the Naval Base in Igbokoda, Ondo State, after losing contact with air traffic controllers while on its way from Benin to Lagos.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, confirmed the incident on Monday, saying the aircraft, with tail number NGR 931, disappeared from radar at about 9:13am.
Keyamo said air traffic controllers lost contact with the aircraft and all attempts to re-establish communication with the crew were unsuccessful before information later confirmed that the aircraft had crashed in the Igbokoda area.
He said the wreckage had been located close to the Naval Base, while search and rescue operations were immediately activated to locate and assist those on board.
“Preliminary information suggests that there were 25 passengers and seven crew members on board,” the minister said, bringing the number of people aboard the aircraft to 32.
The incident has triggered an ongoing search and rescue operation in the area as authorities work to establish the circumstances surrounding the crash and determine the condition of those on board.
According to the minister, the aircraft was travelling from Benin to Lagos when air traffic controllers lost contact with it at 9:13am.
Keyamo said the aviation authorities were informed of the disappearance and that efforts to raise the aircraft on radio proved unsuccessful before its crash location was subsequently confirmed.
He, however, clarified that the Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority do not have regulatory control over military aircraft.
Despite this limitation, Keyamo said he had spoken with the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke, and pledged the ministry’s full cooperation and assistance to the military in the ongoing search and rescue operation.
The minister said further information on the incident would be made available as authorities obtain more details from the ongoing operation.
The crash comes as emergency personnel and relevant authorities continue efforts at the crash site near the Naval Base in Igbokoda, with the immediate priority remaining the search for and rescue of the 32 people reported to have been aboard the aircraft.
