A Diamond 40 Trainer Aircraft belonging to the Nigerian Air Force crashed on Monday on the outskirts of Kaduna town in Kaduna State, during which the student pilot was injured.
According to the air force, the pilot “force-landed the aircraft after an airborne emergency prevented him from flying back to 401 Flying Training School in Kaduna State.”
A NAF aircraft, Mi-17 attack helicopter, had crashed on January 8 in the North-East anti-insurgency operation, but no life was lost during the incident.
The NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Vice Marshal Olatokunbo Adesanya, who confirmed the Mi-17 helicopter crash, had said the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, directed a board of inquiry to determine the cause of the accident.
However, no feedback was communicated from the board till now.
One of our correspondents learnt that in the air mishap on Monday in Kaduna, the Diamond aircraft was being flown on a solo mission, when there was an emergency which forced the student pilot to bring it down.
NAF’s spokesman, AVM Adesanya, who confirmed the incident, said the injured pilot is currently receiving medical treatment in the military hospital.
Adesanya said, “A NAF student pilot has force-landed a Diamond 40 Trainer Aircraft on the outskirts of Kaduna while on a solo mission. The incident took place as a result of an airborne emergency that could not enable the pilot to fly the aircraft back to the base.
“He, therefore, force-landed the aircraft and did a minimal damage to it. However, the student pilot, who was the only one on board, suffered minor injuries and is already receiving treatment at the 461 Nigerian Air Force Hospital, Kaduna.”
