The Nigerian Air Force C-130 crew, earlier detained in Burkina Faso and released yesterday, has continued its mission from the country to Portugal with the same aircraft.
Recall that the crew, comprising 11 Nigerian personnel on a mission to Portugal for scheduled aircraft maintenance, made an emergency landing in Burkina Faso which was described as a precautionary measure following a technical issue with the aircraft.
The spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa while speaking with journalists stated that that the plane and the crew are scheduled to continue to Portugal for maintenance, as planned before the incident. Ebienfa said the release of the crew followed diplomatic interventions by a high-powered Nigerian delegation dispatched to Burkina Faso by President Bola Tinubu.
He noted that the delegation was led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, and included the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Ambassador Mohammed Mohammed, the Chief of Policy and Plans, Nigerian Air Force, Air Vice Marshal Abubakar Abdullahi, Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to ECOWAS, Ambassador Olawale Awe, and the Chief of Protocol in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Wahab Akande.