A military aircraft that crashed on Monday had disappeared from radar shortly after take-off, according to a senior Air Traffic Controller familiar with the aircraft’s final journey.
The aircraft, with tail number NGR 931, was travelling from Benin City, the Edo State capital, to Lagos when air traffic controllers lost contact with it at about 9:13am, before it crashed into a swamp in Igbokoda, the headquarters of Ilaje Local Government Area in Ondo State.
The senior Air Traffic Controller, who spoke with our correspondent on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to comment on the matter, said communication with the aircraft was established shortly after it took off, but contact was subsequently lost, with efforts to reconnect proving unsuccessful.
“I must tell you that this is looking somehow shoddy. When the aircraft took off, we were in touch with it shortly afterward, but it disappeared from the radar. Efforts to reach it were unsuccessful,” the source said.
According to the source, personnel at the closest reporting points in Okitipupa later reported hearing a loud bang believed to have been the sound of the crash.
The source said the military immediately commenced search-and-rescue efforts after it was reported that the aircraft had disappeared from radar.
The source, however, stressed that the ongoing search-and-rescue operation would provide more information about what happened.
“But it was strange. Almost immediately after it took off, we lost communication with it. There was no communication, nothing. And that makes it suspicious. The aircraft just vanished until the crash.
“Even as we speak, the search-and-rescue operation is still ongoing, and when that is concluded, I should be able to get more information,” the source said.
While describing the loss of communication as suspicious, the source said the circumstances surrounding the crash would become clearer as rescue and recovery operations progress.
“The loss of communication is very suspicious, but God will help us anyway. It is very possible for us to get clearer information as things unfold,” the source added.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, also disclosed that air traffic controllers had informed him of the disappearance of the aircraft.
“I regret to inform the general public that Air Traffic Controllers have informed me of the disappearance of a military aircraft with tail number NGR 931, enroute Lagos from Benin at 0913 hours earlier today. All efforts to raise the aircraft on radio proved abortive,” Keyamo said.
He later confirmed that the wreckage had been located close to the Naval Base in Igbokoda.
“Subsequently, information, however, confirmed that the military aircraft had crashed close to the Naval Base in Igbokoda, Ondo State. The wreckage has been located, and search and rescue operations are ongoing,” he said.
Keyamo said 32 people, comprising 25 passengers and seven crew members, were on board the aircraft.
However, as of the time of filing this report, it could not be independently ascertained if lives were lost in the crash.
However, as of the time of filing this report, military personnel and emergency responders had intensified efforts to recover victims and locate the black box of the ill-fated NAF ATR-42 aircraft.
The PUNCH gathered that local fishermen joined the rescue operation as authorities struggled to access the wreckage.
The Nigerian Air Force noted that the aircraft was on a routine mission from Benin to Lagos when the accident occurred. The identities and condition of those on board were yet to be officially disclosed as of the time of filing this report.
The aircraft was said to have crashed into a swampy area within the creek, making access to the wreckage difficult and slowing the rescue operation.
Military officers from a nearby base were leading the rescue operation, while local fishermen also assisted efforts to access the wreckage.
