By Kingsley Omonobi
One of the co-pilots who flew the ATR 42-500mp aircraft registered NAF 931 that crashed at Igbokoda, Ondo State on Monday is Squadron Leader Ahamefule Man-Ugwueje.
Ahamefule was said to have gotten married to Flight Lieutenant Damilola Adekunle on September 20, two weeks ago in an elaborate wedding in the capital city of Abuja.
A Squadron Leader in the Nigerian Air Force is equivalent in rank to a Major in the Nigerian Army.
He is survived by his young wife, parents, and family.
According to information on his Facebook profile, Man-Ugwueje’s hometown is listed as Umuahia, Abia State, while Abuja is listed as his current town/city.
The aircraft, which had 25 people on board, including five crew members and 20 passengers, crashed while on a routine mission from Benin to Lagos.
The pages of the wedding planner and vendors involved in the ceremony showed videos and photographs from Man-Ugwueje and Adekunle’s wedding in Abuja.
Squadron Leader Ahamefule Man Ugwueje, one of the crew members of the Nigerian Air Force ATR 42 aircraft that crashed in Igbokoda, Ondo State, had married Flight Lieutenant Damilola Adekunle on September 19, just over two weeks before the crash.
— Vanguard Newspapers (@vanguardngrnews) October 6, 2026
The couple, both from families… pic.twitter.com/Ska78VTTeo
The Nigerian Air Force on Tuesday confirmed that all 25 people on board died in the accident and released their names.
The ill-fated aircraft, an ATR 42-500MP, according to aviation records, was returned from storage PDM at Mönchengladbach, Germany in December 2024 after being stored since 2021.
The aircraft is said to be 18 years old and had been deployed for VIP movement, airlifting of students and personnel, and other operational duties, flying perfectly well since its return in 2024 until Monday’s crash.
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