The Nigeria Police Force has denied media insinuations that its helicopter, Bell 429 5NMDA, flying from Abuja to Bauchi crashed on Tuesday.
Force Public Relations Officer,CP Frank Mba in a statement debunked the claim saying the aircraft did not crash as being reported in some sections of the media and none of the occupants sustained any injury whatsoever. All six 6 on board including the pilot and co-pilot are in good condition.
According to him, the aircraft, which was flown by one of the best Police Pilots, was professionally safe-landed with minor damage on the rear rotor as a result of obstacle at the landing spot. The incident occurred around 7:30PM local time.
The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, has commended the Police Air-Wing for their professionalism in safe-landing the aircraft and averting any serious air-mishap,Mba said.
The police spokesman further noted that the Nigeria Police Air-wing – with a fleet of one fixed-wing aircraft, a citation jet and thirteen 13 helicopters – has got a strong history of air safety since its establishment in the year 1972.