Nigerian military aircraft crashes in Ondo State, killing 25

A Nigerian military plane flying from Benin City to Lagos crashed on Monday in southwestern Ondo State, killing all 25 people on board.

The aircraft, an ATR-42 belonging to the Nigerian Air Force, went down near a naval base in the Igbokoda area on a routine mission.

Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo said air traffic controllers lost contact with it at 0813 GMT, and the wreckage was later found near Igbokoda, where search and rescue teams were deployed.

The Air Force said on Tuesday that NAF 931 carried five crew members and 20 passengers, and that there were no survivors.

That figure is lower than the 32 deaths first announced on Monday, when the presidency spoke of 25 passengers and seven crew members.

President Bola Tinubu has ordered an investigation and declared three days of national mourning. He called it a painful moment for the Armed Forces and the entire nation.

The cause of the crash has not been made public. It is one of the deadliest air disasters in Nigeria in recent years.

The Nigerian Air Force has faced several fatal accidents in recent years, including the May 2021 crash that killed then Chief of Army Staff Lt-Gen Ibrahim Attahiru and ten others.

Further details are expected as investigators begin their work.