An investigation is underway to determine what caused a small Nigerian air force passenger plane to crash Sunday, killing all seven people on board.
The Beechcraft King Air 350i aircraft crashed while attempting to return to the airport in the capital city Abuja after reporting engine failure, according to a tweet by Air Vice Marshal Ibikunle Daramola, an air force spokesman. The twin turboprop plane was en route to the central Nigerian city of Minna, roughly 60 miles northwest of Abuja.
The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), @CAS_IOAmao, has ordered an immediate investigation into the incident. While urging the general public to remain calm & await the outcome of investigation, the CAS, on behalf of all NAF personnel, commiserates with the families of the deceased.
— Air Vice Marshal Ibikunle Daramola (@KunleDaramola3) February 21, 2021
The air force has not provided the names of those killed in the crash.
Photos from the area show a charred and broken fuselage laying in a field.
A witness described the moments leading up to the crash.
"As he (the plane's pilot) was going down, he struggled to go back to the airport, at the end he just crashed," Alaba Lawal told Reuters. "I just saw the whole thing explode, fire and smoke together. ... When I got there I saw dead bodies on the ground."
Another witness, Olugbenga Alaade, said, "Everybody there was screaming full of disbelief." Alaade, a government employee who said he has worked at the airport for nine years and who saw the crash, told The Associated Press that it had been at least a decade since a plane has crashed at that airport.
Daramola said first responders were at the scene and he urged the public to remain calm and await the results of the investigation.
But patience appeared in short supply. There were multiple tweets criticizing the government and the military for its poor maintenance record and casting doubt on a transparent investigation.
Many tweets also commiserated with the families of the deceased.
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