The Nigerian Air Force, NAF, has refuted the news that made the rounds on Monday, that a helicopter belonging to the Nigerian Air Force crashed in a village in Kaduna State.
But the Director, Public Relations and Information, NAF, AVM Edward Gabkwet, has come out to say that no NAF helicopter crashed.
According to him, it was an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, UAV, popularly known as a drone. He said the drone had crashed in Kaduna on Monday morning.
Making the clarification on Monday in Abuja, he said, “Contrary to reports on social media as well as on a handful of traditional media outlets that a NAF helicopter had crashed in Kaduna earlier today, July 1, be informed that no helicopter crash occurred.
“Instead, a NAF Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, UAV, experienced a mishap after take-off for a mission. This occurred at a location near Rumji Village and about 15 Km from the Base. Since it is an unmanned vehicle, there were no casualties on board or the ground,” he said.
The PRI, stated that a preliminary investigation had since commenced to ascertain what might have caused the mishap.
He, however, assured Nigerians that the minor setback would not, in any way, impinge on all ongoing operations.
He said, “It should also be pointed out that the propensity to always rush to press in the name of ‘breaking news’ without a hold of the complete facts should be discouraged in its entirety.
“While the news of the crash filtered in, some outlets had misinformed Nigerians that a helicopter had crashed. This is without the decency to clarify from the NAF.
“This attitude should be discouraged as it negates the principle of developmental journalism, balanced reporting and fairness.
“Members of the media are again advised to always seek clarification from authorized military outlets. This is before rushing to ‘break’ the news,” he added.
source: Vanguard
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