Essential Ndubuisi
By Ekwi Ajide
Accident Investigative Bureau, AIB, has submitted an interim report on the plane crash that killed former Nigeria’s army chief, Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru and ten other military officers on May 21, 2021 in Kaduna State.
The Commissioner and Chief Executive Officer of AIB, Engr Akin Olateru submitted the report to the Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Oladayo Amao, at NAF Headquarters, Abuja.
A press release jointly signed by spokesperson of NAF, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet and that of AIB, Tunji Oketunbi said following the sad incident and a directive by the Chief of the Air Staff, CAS, a joint investigative body consisting of experienced NAF safety officers and the Accident Investigative Bureau (AIB) be constituted, the joint bureau after about three months, painstakingly investigated the circumstances surrounding the air crash and submitted an interim report to the Chief of Air Staff.
The statement noted that the report is organized into three sections -the information obtained in the course of the investigation; analysis of data collected in view of the Board’s Terms of Reference; and the conclusion, which covers the initial findings and immediate recommendations.
It emphasised that at this interim stage, a total of twenty seven initial findings and eight immediate safety recommendations were made for the convening authority as well as other aviation related agencies for immediate implementation.
The statement also disclosed that the final report will contain the flight data recorder readout, the reviewed operator’s and service provider’s standard operating procedures as well as other detailed analysis.
Receiving the report, the CAS reiterated that the essence of activating the ‘joint investigative’ clause contained in the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed between the NAF and the AIB on first July, 2020 is a clear indication of the potency of collaboration in aircraft accident investigation, which must be encouraged.
Air Marshal Amao also noted that such collaborative efforts make accident investigations more transparent adding that the outcome of the investigation is not necessarily aimed at punitive measures but essentially at generally improving safety in the aviation industry.
The Chief Executive Officer of AIB, Engr Akin Olateru on his part, said that the joint investigation with the NAF was its first direct involvement in military air crash investigation in Nigeria and second investigation outside its mandate having also assisted Sao Tome and Principe in the past.
He also stated that copies of the report, with the endorsement of the CAS, will also be submitted to the Minister of Aviation and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, to ensure that the recommendations addressed to aviation agencies are implemented.
The Commissioner also stated that although the accident involved a military aircraft and crew, it happened at a civil airport adding that the involvement of AIB in the investigation by the Nigerian Air Force would help in closing the gaps on the civil aviation side.
