The authorities of Nigeria have confirmed this Monday that the 32 people who were on board a military plane have lost their lives after the aircraft crashed near the naval base of Igbokoda, in the southeast of the country, after taking off from Benin City.
The Nigerian president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has expressed his sorrow for the accident in which "the 25 passengers and the seven crew members" who were traveling on an ATR-42 aircraft of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF, for its acronym in English) died.
Through an official statement, the president has sent his "deepest condolences" to the families of the victims, as well as to all the officers and aviators of the NAF and to the chief of the Air Force General Staff, Marshal Sunday Kelvin Aneke.
"This is a painful moment for our Armed Forces and for the entire nation. The personnel of our Air Force risk their lives every day to ensure the safety of Nigeria. Their sacrifice will never be forgotten," he noted in the statement, in which he also expressed his "deep sadness" for the tragedy.
Tinubu has ordered the Air Force to initiate "immediately" a "thorough investigation" to clarify the circumstances and causes of the incident, while acknowledging the rapid activation of the search and rescue operation after the accident. He also highlighted the actions of the emergency services and the authorities of Ondo state.
The crashed aircraft had departed from Benin City, the capital of Edo state, in southern Nigeria, heading to Lagos. According to the NAF, it was carrying out a "routine mission" when contact was lost and it was declared missing at 9:13 a.m. (local time) this Monday.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development of Nigeria, Festus Keyamo, confirmed the incident through his social media, after all attempts to establish radio communication with the plane were "unsuccessful."