The Nigerian Airforce has described the reported crash of a military helicopter as a result of it being shot by Boko Haram terrorists on Tuesday as Fake News.
The clarification was made by the Director of Airforce Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, on Tuesday.
He stated that it was a United Nation helicopter, which developed a fault that made an emergency landing at Banki but flew to Maiduguri after repairs.
“No helicopter was shot down. No helicopter crashed in Borno State today (Tuesday).
“It is sad that a respected media outlet would publish a false, unverified report like this.
“A UN helicopter indeed undertook a mission to Banki & has since returned to Maiduguri.
“One would have expected that, in line with the ethics of journalism, the more deliberate effort would have been made to verify the story by contacting relevant authorities before going to press, rather than propagating fake news.l
“Banki military arrived the scene to provide security coverage while the team conducted emergency repair and the helicopter eventually flew back to Maiduguri Around 11 am 17 Nov 2020.”
