Police deny AIB report on NPF chopper crash

The Police Department has denied reports that six of its officers were injured in a helicopter crash at Bauchi Airport.

According to a statement signed by the Accident Investigation Bureau’s General Manager for Public Affairs Tunji Oketunbi on Thursday, February 27, 2022, the accident occurred on January 26, 2022, around 7:30 p.m. (local time).

The plane was flying from Abuja to Bauchi. There were no deaths reported.

The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) notified the Accident Investigation Bureau of Nigeria (AIB) on January 26, 2022, about an accident involving a Bell 429 helicopter with registration marks 5N-MDA owned and operated by the Nigerian Police Force (NPF). The accident occurred at Bauchi Airport on January 26, 2022, around 7:30 p.m. (local time).

“With six people on board, the NPF helicopter left Abuja at 16:54 UTC for Bauchi, maintaining a height of 5,500 feet. There were some injuries, but no fatalities, according to the statement.

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The bureau, which began its investigation into the matter, asked for public help in the form of video clips, evidence, or information, and stated that it was willing to accept it.

“The bureau will appreciate it if the general public and press respect the privacy of the people involved and wait until the formal report is released before assuming the cause of the accident,” the statement continued.

Commissioner of Police Frank Mba refuted the AIB report by claiming that none of the members were injured.

“The plane did not crash, as some reports in the media claimed, and none of the passengers were injured in any way.”

According to a statement received by The ICIR, “all six on board, including the pilot and co-pilot, are in good condition.”

“Likewise, the aircraft, which was flown by one of the best Police pilots, was professionally safe-landed with minor damage to the rear rotor as a result of an obstacle at the landing spot,” the statement continued.

Since its inception in 1972, the Nigeria Police Air Wing has had a strong history of air safety, according to Mba, with a fleet of one fixed-wing aircraft, a citation jet, and 13 helicopters.