Ondo State Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa has said the pilot of the Nigerian Air Force ATR-42 aircraft that crashed in Igbokoda may have prevented an even greater disaster by manoeuvring the plane away from the community before it went down.
The aircraft, identified as NAF 931, crashed in a swampy area of Igbokoda in the Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State on October 5 while reportedly operating a routine mission from Benin to Lagos.
The Nigerian Air Force later confirmed that 25 people, comprising five crew members and 20 passengers, were on board and that there were no survivors.
Aiyedatiwa disclosed the pilot’s reported manoeuvre during an on-the-spot assessment of the crash site on Wednesday as recovery teams continued efforts to locate the submerged wreckage and recover the victims.
According to the governor, residents who witnessed the incident said the aircraft appeared to be descending towards the community while producing a sound that suggested a possible engine problem.
He said the pilot subsequently manoeuvred the aircraft away from the populated area before it crashed approximately 200 metres from the community and went into the swamp.
Aiyedatiwa said only the pilot could have explained the precise action taken during the aircraft’s final moments, but argued that the manoeuvre could have prevented a significantly larger catastrophe had the aircraft come down inside the community.
The account was also echoed by the traditional ruler of Igbokoda, Oba Afolabi Odidiomo, who said the pilot’s actions spared the town from potentially greater devastation.
Odidiomo said residents were deeply affected by the crash but acknowledged that the consequences could have been much worse if the aircraft had fallen within the populated area.
Despite the reported manoeuvre, the crash resulted in the deaths of all 25 people aboard, leaving families, the Nigerian Air Force and the wider community mourning the loss.
Aiyedatiwa described the crash site as a distressing scene, with parts of victims’ bodies, clothing and aircraft components recovered while the main body of the aircraft remained submerged.
The difficult terrain has significantly complicated the recovery operation, forcing authorities and local communities to rely on specialised equipment, boats, divers and other resources to reach the crash location.
The governor said he directed the Ondo State Ministry of Works to deploy two amphibious machines, popularly known as swamp buggies, to create better access through the waterways.
The equipment has enabled larger boats to move closer to the site while excavation work is being undertaken in an effort to locate the submerged aircraft and other remains.
Navy personnel and local divers have also been searching deeper sections of the swamp for the aircraft’s main body, cockpit and additional victims.
Recovery teams have deployed underwater survey technology, including side-scan sonar, to help establish the location of the submerged wreckage and guide subsequent recovery operations.
The difficult recovery effort comes alongside an investigation into what caused the aircraft to crash, with authorities yet to establish a definitive cause.
Reports from witnesses about a possible engine problem have not been established as the official cause, making the ongoing investigation critical to determining what happened during the flight’s final moments.
The Federal Government has already treated the incident as a national tragedy, with President Bola Tinubu declaring three days of national mourning and directing the Nigerian Air Force to conduct a thorough investigation.
The tragedy has also prompted renewed discussions about aviation safety, with civil and military aviation authorities moving to strengthen technical cooperation following the crash.
Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo and Chief of the Air Staff Sunday Kelvin Aneke have discussed a framework for greater collaboration on areas including airworthiness, certification and technical training.
For the people of Igbokoda, however, the immediate focus remains the recovery operation and support for the families of those who died.
Aiyedatiwa commiserated with the families and the Nigerian Air Force, describing the victims as young Nigerians who had committed themselves to defending the country.
As recovery teams continue working in the challenging swamp terrain, attention remains fixed on locating the remaining wreckage and establishing the circumstances surrounding one of the country’s latest military aviation tragedies.