6th July, 2017
Nigerian Air Force (NAF) on Thursday said its Agusta 109 Light Utility Helicopter suffered a mishap while undertaking a liaison mission in the North East.
Air Commodore Olatokunbo Adesanya, the Director of Public Relations and Information, NAF Headquarters, said this in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja.
Adesanya stated that the helicopter’s target was to further enhance synergy between Nigerian Army and the Airforce in the ongoing counter-insurgency operations in the North-East.
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He noted that the incidence, which occurred on Thursday, July 6, was as a result ofairborne technical fault.
He added that “the experienced pilots, however, successfully ditched the helicopter into a pool of water to minimise damage and loss of lives.
“Consequently, there were neither injuries nor loss of lives to anyone on board or on ground.”
According to him, the AirForce command has immediately directed the constitution of a board of inquiry to determine the exact cause of the incidence.