The brother of a Nigerian Air Force sergeant who died in the recent aircraft crash in Ondo State has accused the Air Force of flying a faulty aircraft and attempting to downplay the circumstances surrounding the incident.
In an emotional video, the grieving man claimed that his sister had informed him of a technical fault with the aircraft before the crash.
According to him, the aircraft was travelling from Abuja to Lagos but made a stop in Benin after developing a mechanical problem.
“Who flies a faulty aircraft? The Nigerian Air Force. They flew a faulty aircraft that crashed, and now they lied about it. They tried to make the situation less severe, and now there’s damage control everywhere,” he said.
He questioned the Air Force’s description of the flight as a routine mission from Benin to Lagos, insisting that the aircraft had originally departed Abuja and stopped in Benin because of a technical issue.
The grieving brother also raised concerns about the welfare of Air Force personnel, revealing that his sister, who had served for over 11 years, had asked him for ₦17,000 shortly before the incident.
“How does a sergeant in the Nigerian Air Force not have ₦17,000 in their account?” he asked, alleging that personnel frequently experience salary delays and financial difficulties.
He further claimed that, despite being his sister’s next of kin, he had received no official communication from the Air Force five days after the incident.
“My sister is the best thing that ever happened to me. How am I supposed to console my mother?” he said tearfully.
He demanded to know who authorised the aircraft to continue its journey despite the reported technical problem and called for a thorough investigation.
The allegations regarding the aircraft’s condition, the decision to continue the flight and the handling of the incident have not been independently verified.
