The Nigeria Safety and Investigation Bureau (NSIB) investigation has revealed that the helicopter crash on February 9, 2024, which resulted in the deaths of former Access Holdings CEO Herbert Wigwe, his wife Doreen, their son Chizi, and former NGX Group Chairman Abimbola Ogunbanjo, was caused by lapses in the safety management systems of the helicopter company, Orbic Air, LLC.
Captain Alex Badeh Jr, NSIB Director General, referred to the findings of the United States National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which suggested that the crash stemmed from systemic issues within the company’s safety culture rather than pilot error.
The crash occurred near Halloran Springs, California, involving an Airbus EC130B4 helicopter.
In an interview on Newsnight, an Arise TV programme, Badeh said: “You could go deeper and wonder what happened because it is more a company culture.
I would not blame the pilot, they (the report) spoke about the company’s safety management systems. It seems more like a company culture than anything.”
The NTSB’s final report indicated that pilot disorientation, company negligence, and a violation of flight protocols — specifically the decision to proceed under visual flight rules in instrument meteorological conditions —were major factors contributing to the crash. Badeh, however, refrained from using the term ‘negligence’, adding, “I would hesitate to use the word negligence.
I am aware they are in court now, so I do not want my words to come back and bite me later. From the report, which says the company was indicted for safety management systems, except they should have looked deeper into this.”
When asked about the pilot’s role, Badeh explained, “The pilot should have spoken to his flight follower who happened to be the president of the company and he should have looked deeper into it and said, ‘Maybe we should delay or we should do this or that.’”
Addressing the issue of accountability, Badeh concluded, “It is the pilot but it is always easy to blame the pilot whereas there is a system behind that pilot.
There is a whole system that should have caught this and even if he did not catch it, you do not know what sort of pressure that was on him.
This was a high-profile person. They knew he was a high-profile person. They know people who go for the Super Bowl are wealthy people. Everywhere, even in the United States, there is always that pressure.”