What Nigerians need to know about NAF aircraft crash

Recovery teams continue dewatering and engineering operations at the site of the crashed NAF ATR 42-500 aircraft in Igbokoda, Ondo State, to facilitate the retrieval of remaining wreckage and support the investigation...Photo Credit: NAF

It is interesting that all incidents or accidents involving an aircraft attract the attention of citizens around the world. I doubt I have the answer. It could be because of the very high technology involved. But most products being manufactured have gone through some sort of technological innovations. Or it could be because of the very high cost or capital outlay involved in either aircraft acquisition or air travel operations.

Some have posited that air travel is for the rich and upper class all over the world, though that is debatable. This position is always hinged on the premise that the high cost of air transport has made it exclusive for the rich and quality people. No wonder any disruption to aircraft movement attracts global attention.

Only last Monday, October 5, 2026, a Nigerian Air Force ATR – 42 with registration number NAF 933 crashed while on a mission from Benin to Lagos, killing all 32 people on board, comprising seven crew members and 25 passengers. The recovery operation has been complicated by the thick mangroves, murky waters and deep mud at the crash site, with the main aircraft body believed to be completely submerged.

Therefore, major air mishaps like this raise questions upon questions. The same attention does not accompany accidents involving other modes of transportation. Meanwhile, every life is supposed to count.

 No wonder the United Nations agency for aviation, the International Civil Aviation Organisation, created Annex 13, a manual titled Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation. It established international Standards and Recommended Practices that govern how aviation accidents and serious incidents are investigated worldwide.

The core principles of Annex 13 is the fact that accidents are investigated to prevent future occurrence – not to apportion blame or liability. Member states of ICAO must establish independent accident investigation authorities and allow for global participation, i.e., the state of the incident aircraft registry, the state of the operator of the said aircraft, and the State of Design and Manufacture. All these interested parties must be allowed to participate in the investigation or send accredited representatives. This is for the s

 led to the accident so that lessons could be learnt and thereby take steps to prevent a future occurrence.

According to ICAO, an aircraft accident is defined as any disruption to flight operations where a person is fatally or seriously injured, the aircraft sustains major structural damage/failure, or the aircraft is missing.

When this happens, the state of occurrence is expected to notify relevant states and ICAO and protect the crash site, wreckage, and flight recorders [black boxes] immediately, and, of course, preliminary reports are issued within 30 days, while final reports are made public as soon as possible. But in this part of the world where there is no laboratory for the interpretation or analysis of the flight recorders, the one-year duration for the release of the accident report does not apply.

It is pertinent to note that the Annex 13 manual applies to civil aviation accidents, not military aircraft accidents. This means that military aircraft accidents are handled militarily worldwide.

What is obtainable, however, is that each country has its own permissible level of collaboration with civil bodies for the benefit of the general public, but not to the extent of making reports of military aircraft accidents public.

It follows, therefore, that Nigerians need to know there is no room for speculation about air crashes, whether civil or military.

Similarly, Nigerians need to know that, in the national interest and to protect the country’s safety and integrity, information about military aircraft accidents is classified as Top Secret. This is not the case with civil aircraft accidents. In fact, NSIB sells published reports on past aircraft accidents.

At a time like this, our hearts go out to the families of the gallant heroes as we await the investigation team’s report. This is with the hope that lessons will be learnt and steps will be taken to prevent future occurrences. By so doing, the souls of the departed will not be in vain.

Critical as American citizens are, they don’t talk down to their government over one air mishap or the other, even in the face of the innumerable crashes they have recorded since the United States war with Iran started.

Adurogboye, a former General Manager of Public Affairs at the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority