Squadron Leader Aham Man-Ugweje has been identified as the pilot of the Nigerian Air Force aircraft that crashed in Igbokoda, Ondo State, on Monday.
Military sources said Ugweje was piloting the ATR 42-500 Maritime Patrol aircraft, marked NAF 931, when it crashed during a routine flight from Benin City, Edo State, to Lagos.
The sources also identified Samuel Victor as the aircraft’s technician.
A senior Air Force officer said the aircraft was attached to Squadron Leader MM Haruna but clarified that Haruna was not operating the aircraft when it crashed.
“The aircraft is attached to Squadron Leader MM Haruna, but he wasn’t the one flying it. It was, however, flown by Squadron Leader Aham Man Ugweje,” the officer said.
Another military source said Ugweje got married about two weeks before the crash.
“Squadron Leader Man Ugweje Aham was the pilot of the ill-fated aircraft. Sadly, he got married two weeks ago. The technician is Samuel Victor, but I can’t confirm his rank,” the source said.
The aircraft operated under the 81 Air Maritime Group in Benin City and was one of two ATR 42 aircraft the military used for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance operations, as well as limited transport duties.
Military sources also said some newly commissioned pilot officers were among those aboard the aircraft, although they could not immediately confirm the exact number of people on board.
“Some newly commissioned pilot officers were among them. Even the number of those on board isn’t certain yet,” one source said.
The Nigerian Air Force later confirmed that 25 people, comprising 20 passengers and five crew members, were aboard the aircraft and that none survived the crash.
The figure differed from the earlier 32-person estimate given by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo.
The aircraft disappeared from radar at about 9:13am while flying from Benin City to Lagos. Authorities later located its wreckage near the Naval Base in Igbokoda.
President Bola Tinubu has ordered a thorough investigation into the crash and declared three days of national mourning for the victims.
The military acquired the ATR 42 under a $73m agreement signed with Alenia Aeronautica, now Leonardo, in 2007. The aircraft was delivered in December 2010.
Military sources said the aircraft underwent Periodic Depot Maintenance at the Rheinland Air Service facility in Mönchengladbach, Germany, after the military took it there in January 2022. It reportedly returned to Nigeria in December 2024.
Authorities have yet to establish the cause of the crash as investigations continue.
