The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has hailed the courage and exceptional professionalism of two Alpha Jet pilots who safely ejected after encountering an in-flight emergency during a post-inspection test flight.
A statement by the Director, Public Relations and Information of NAF, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, stated that the inspection test was conducted at NAF Base, Kainji, on Saturday.
Ejodame said the aircraft had taken off for a routine functional check when it developed a sudden emergency.
He said the pilots were said to have remained calm, expertly manoeuvred the jet away from populated areas and then executed a safe ejection in line with global aviation safety procedures.
Ejodame said the crew’s swift action demonstrated high discipline, competence and dedication to duty.
He said that both pilots were immediately recovered and were undergoing routine medical checks.
According to him, the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Sunday Aneke, lauded the pilots for their sound judgement, noting that their professionalism averted what could have been a major tragedy.
He said the CAS had ordered the convening of a Board of Inquiry to investigate the cause of the incident.
Ejodame said the NAF remained committed to maintaining strict safety standards and protecting the lives of its personnel and citizens in line with its constitutional mandate.
Dele Fashomi, seasoned journalist and communication teacher, is a holder of Master of Arts degree in Communication and Language Arts from the University of Ibadan in 1992/93.
Earlier, he had bagged a Bachelor degree from the same university in 1984, after which he proceeded to the Nigerian Institute of Journalism, Lagos, in 1990, for a postgraduate diploma in Journalism.
He had done many courses in communication, including the EU-BBC Editing Course in 2002.
Mr. Fashomi combines effectively the practice, research and teaching of communication. And to date, he has published two academic works in communication: Issues in Communication Technology and Policy (2010) and Economic and Social Issues in Advertising and PR (2013).
He had his first break in the Nigerian media in Concord Newspapers in 1990 and today, he has over two and half decades experience earned in several newspapers.
He has been part of many start-ups, such as The Republic (1987), The Comet (1999), The Anchor 2001 – 2002; Sun Newspapers (2003); Westerner newsmagazine (2005 – 2010) as Editor; National Life (2011) as Sunday Editor, and Newswatch Newspapers (2012- 2016) as Daily Editor.
Dele Fashomi is now the Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Newstide247.com newspaper online, which he started in July 2015. He is also into biography writing, with many books in his trail, some of which he wrote alone and one he co- authored with his mentor, Mr Dare Babarinsa, entitled: Olabiyi Durojaiye – DARE TO BE DiFFERENT. He also guided and collaborated with Pa Olatunji Odusanya in writing his autobiography – AGAINST ALL ODDS. There are many other books in the works under his pen.
