The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Air Force, Kabiru Alhassan, has urged Nigerians to remain calm as questions mount over the circumstances surrounding the Nigerian Air Force aircraft crash in Ondo State.
Alhassan, in a solidarity message on Tuesday, said his thoughts were with the victims, their families and the personnel involved in the response to the crash.
The lawmaker’s appeal comes as the NAF begins a comprehensive investigation into the crash of its ATR-42 aircraft, NAF 931, which went down in the Igbokoda area of Ondo State while travelling from Benin City to Lagos.
The aircraft had reportedly disappeared from radar shortly after take-off, with a senior air traffic controller saying contact with the aircraft was lost at about 9:13am before it crashed into a swamp in Igbokoda, the headquarters of Ilaje Local Government Area.
The NAF has since confirmed that 25 people were on board the aircraft and that there were no survivors. It has released the names of the five crew members and 20 passengers killed in the crash.
Alhassan, who represents the House committee overseeing Air Force affairs, commended the Nigerian Air Force, security agencies, emergency responders and other personnel involved in the response to the incident.
He said, “My thoughts and prayers are with the passengers, crew members, their families and loved ones at this difficult moment.”
The lawmaker also appealed to Nigerians to avoid circulating unverified information, stressing that authorities were still working to establish the circumstances surrounding the incident.
He urged personnel involved in the response to sustain their efforts and expressed solidarity with the families of the deceased.
The crash has intensified scrutiny of military aviation safety, particularly the circumstances surrounding the loss of contact with NAF 931 before it went down.
The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke, has directed a comprehensive investigation to determine what caused the accident, while the President, Bola Tinubu, has declared three days of national mourning for the deceased personnel.
The House committee is expected to monitor developments surrounding the investigation as authorities work to establish the events that preceded the crash.
