Air Force Helicopter Crashes In Boko Haram Combat

A Nigerian Air Force (NAF) helicopter providing close air support to troops of 145 Battalion at Damasak in Northern Borno State has crashed in combat on Wednesday night.

The Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, made this revelation known in a statement on Wednesday.

Daramola, however, did not disclose the model of the helicopter or how many personnel were inside it at the time the crash happened. Nigerian Air Force has over a dozen of Russian made helicopters, MMil Mi-17 and Mil Mi-24 models.

He added that the aircraft involved in the ongoing counterinsurgency operations in the North East.

“The incident, occurred about 7:45 pm today, 2 January 2019. Details of the cause of the crash are still scanty”, he said.

“As soon as the details of the crash are known, they will be made available to the public”, Daramola added.

Naija News recalls that the spokesman of the Airforce has earlier revealed that the Air Task Force (ATF) of Operation LAFIYA DOLE destroyed a building being used as meeting venue by Boko Haram fighters near Baga in Northern Borno State.

“The attack was conducted 1 Jan 2019, after series of Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions confirmed that the building was being used as an assembly point by the terrorists. Consequently, the ATF dispatched a NAF Alpha Jet aircraft to attack the building.”

“A direct hit was recorded on the target leading to significant damage to the structure and neutralisation of the occupants”, he added.