Alarm bells as military jets claim lives of 17 officers within three months

No fewer than 17 military officers have lost their lives over the last three months in three crashes involving Nigerian Air Force jets.

On Sunday, February 21, 2021, seven NAF officers died aboard a Beechcraft KingAir B350i aircraft when the jet crashed in Abuja.

The plane crashed close to the runway of the Abuja International Airport after reporting engine failure.

Also, on Wednesday, March 31, 2021, NAF spokesman, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, confirmed tht an Alpha-Jet aircraft involved in the anti-terror war against Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province lost radar contact in Borno State.

Two officers were onboard the missing jet which was later declared crashed and the whereabouts of the two airmen unknown till date.

The latest in the series of fatal accidents of NAF jets was Friday's crash involving the newly appointed Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru.

Attahiru and ten others were onboard a NAF Beachcraft 350 aircraft on May 21, 2021 when the plane crashed near the Kaduna International Airport.

The spate of crashes of NAF jets have raised concerns around the safety of the military aviation in Nigeria. 

While civil aviation has recorded no crash involving commercial flights in about a decade, military jets have being crashing in quick succession.

 
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