A Nigerian Air Force jet has reportedly gone down near Karabonde in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State, with early reports indicating that both pilots survived the crash.
The incident occurred on Saturday evening, according to an online station, Lapai TV, which posted a short video confirming that an Alpha Jet went down close to the community.
Eyewitness accounts suggest that the aircraft may have taken off from the Kainji Air Force Base before something went wrong mid-air. One witness told journalists that the pilots ejected before the jet crashed.
“I think the aircraft took off from the Kainji air force base. We learnt that the air force is mobilising to the crash site,” the eyewitness was quoted as saying.
A local resident, Lukman Sulaiman, also confirmed the incident in a telephone conversation with a reporter.
“The incident happened around 4:10pm. It landed very close to town but God so good, the pilots ejected safely,” he said, adding that villagers initially panicked after hearing a loud noise.
“Yes, we heard a noisy landing crash. We were scared. But we eventually started trooping back to the scene,” he added.
As of the time of filing this report, the Nigerian military had not issued any official statement regarding the cause of the crash or the condition of the aircraft.
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