The Accident Investigation Bureau, Nigeria (AIB -N) said it has been mandated by the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) to lead the investigation into the crash of a military aircraft that occurred on Friday at Kaduna International Airport.
The aircraft had onboard 11 people including Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru. Aside from General Attahiru, others aboard the aircraft include six of his aides and the flight crew.
The AIB-N, while acknowledging that it has already commenced investigations, announced that it has recovered the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and the Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) from the accidented Beechcraft 350 aircraft.
AIB-N and NAF had on July 1, 2020 signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between them covering areas of mutual assistance.
The mandate to AIB-N is a clear departure from the past when crashes involving NAF aircraft were investigated by a board within the Nigerian Air Force without the involvement of the AIB, a body statutorily set up to investigate air accidents and serious incidents in the aviation sector.
Aviation experts have clamoured for the involvement of the civil authorities in the investigation of military crashes following repeated incidents.
General Manager, Public Affairs of AIB, Tunji Oketunbi, in a statement on Saturday said: “Investigators will download and analyse vital information contained in the recorders at the AIB-N’s world class Flight Safety Laboratory, in Abuja.”