“All seven staff members on board died in the crash,” Deputy Air Marshal Ibikunle Daramola said on Twitter.
He added that the Chief of Air Staff has ordered an immediate investigation into the incident.
“A King Air 350 military plane has just crashed on the edge of our Abuja runway after reporting an engine failure en route [to] From us. It appears to be fatal, “the country’s aviation minister, Hadi Sirika, said in a statement.
In a follow-up communication on Sunday afternoon, a spokesman for the Ministry of Aviation, James Odaudu, said that “the plane reported an engine failure at 10:39 and crashed on the runway. final access to track 22 from Abuja at 10:48 AM. “
Odaudu said firefighters have been moved to the scene to extinguish a rage that had engulfed the plane.
An aviation worker who asked not to be named, citing the lack of official permission to speak to the press, told CNN he witnessed the crash.
“The accident happened not far from the track. The pilot had tried to return to the track after taking off,” he said.
The worker said the pilot diverted the plane to the crash site, which is in a desolate area. He said the plane narrowly avoided warehouses and makeshift settlements around Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport.