US reveals cause of Wigwe’s Helicopter crash

The US has given more reports on the reason for Herbert Wigwe’s helicopter crash.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in a  report, has given insights into the details of what led to the helicopter crash that caused the death of some prominent persons, including the former CEO of Access Holdings and some of his relatives.

The unfortunate incident that occurred earlier in 2024 led to the death of Herbert Wigwe, his spouse, their child, and three other prominent persons, including Abimbola Ogunbanjo, and ex-chairperson of the Nigerian Exchange Group.

Speaking on the helicopter crash, the Board pointed out some lackadaisical attitude on the part of the pilot. The body also noted that little or no risk evaluation before taking off, insufficient records of maintenance problems, and refusal to follow mandated standards contributed to the helicopter crash.

According to the report, the pilot likely became confused when flying in low visibility conditions. This led to a loss of control and caused the helicopter to crash into the ground. The transportation safety body further pointed out that a technician had earlier tried to work on a radar altimeter that was bad, but didn’t succeed. Knowing this, the helicopter operator still resumed flight.

The body also noted that further probing on the situation revealed that when the pilot had picked up the passenger, he had a conversation with the flight follower, but failed to mention the issue of the bad radar altimeter or the condition of the weather.
Herbert Wigwe was an important figure in the financial sector in Africa and beyond.

He was the co-founder of Access Bank and also became the CEO of Access Holdings in 2022. He was known for his opinions on regional banking integration and was a key player in the expansion of Access Bank to 10 more countries after its merger with Diamond Bank.

Meanwhile, after the crash, discussions were opened on aviation safety. The crash stirred renewed conversations around safety in relation to the aviation industry. The chartered helicopters, both in Nigeria and internationally the topics of the discussions.