All 25 passengers and crew members on board a Nigerian Air Force transport plane have been confirmed dead after the aircraft crashed in southern Nigeria, authorities reported following rescue operations.

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) clarified in an official statement on Tuesday that flight NAF 931 was carrying 20 passengers and five crew members when the disaster struck. The confirmed death toll was revised downward from the 32 casualties initially reported on Monday by Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo.

The ATR-42 aircraft was conducting a routine mission from Edo state to Lagos, Nigeria's commercial capital, when it vanished from radar screens at approximately 9:00 a.m. local time. The wreckage was later located in the Igbokoda area of Ondo state, near a naval installation roughly halfway into its scheduled flight path.

Eyewitness accounts from residents near the scene indicated that the plane clipped trees before crashing near a riverbank, scattering debris across the area. Nigerian President Bola Tinubu extended his heartfelt condolences to the families and colleagues of those who lost their lives in the tragedy.

Source: www.dw.com