Bureau submits report on plane crash involving former army chief Attahiru

The Accident Investigation Bureau Nigeria (AIB-N) has submitted its interim report on the crash of a military aircraft that killed former chief of army staff Lt-Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, to the chief of air staff, Air Marshall Oladayo Amao.

The NAF KING AIR-350 aircraft crashed at the vicinity of Kaduna airport on May 31.

NAF spokesman Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet in a statement on Wednesday said Amao had directed that a joint investigative body consisting of experienced NAF safety officers and the AIB be constituted to investigate the circumstances surrounding the air crash.

He added that after about three months of painstaking joint investigation, the commissioner and the CEO of AIB, Akin Olateru, submitted an interim report on the sad incident to CAS at NAF headquarters.

“It should be noted that at this interim stage, a total of 27 initial findings and eight immediate safety recommendations were made for the convening authority and other aviation related agencies for immediate implementation,” he said.

“It is expected that the final report will contain the flight data recorder readout, the reviewed operator’s and service provider’s standard operating procedures as well as other detailed analysis.”

While receiving the report, the CAS reiterated the main essence of activating the joint investigative clause contained in the memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed between NAF and AIB July 1, 2020.

In his remarks, Olateru said the joint investigation with NAF was its first direct involvement in military air crash investigation in Nigeria and second investigation outside its mandate, having also assisted Sao Tome and Principe in the past.