The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has released a damning final report on the helicopter crash that claimed the lives of former Access Holdings CEO Herbert Wigwe, his wife Doreen, their son Chizi, and three others in February 2024.
The crash occurred on February 9, near the California-Nevada border, during a flight operated under visual flight rules (VFR) despite adverse weather conditions that required instrument flight rules (IFR).
The NTSB report concluded that the pilot became disoriented after entering instrument meteorological conditions (IMC), lost control of the aircraft, and crashed into the terrain.
All six people on board were killed, including Abimbola Ogunbanjo, the former chairman of the Nigerian Exchange Group.
The NTSB attributed the accident not only to the pilot’s poor decision-making but also to multiple safety failures on the part of the helicopter operator. These included:
Inadequate pre-flight risk assessment
Failure to log and address critical maintenance issues
Non-compliance with required regulatory safety standards
A critical detail in the report revealed that the helicopter’s radar altimeter, an essential tool for flying in poor visibility, was not functioning before the flight.
Despite a company mechanic’s unsuccessful attempt to repair it, the pilot and the Director of Maintenance were aware of the issue but allowed the flight to proceed.
The pilot later picked up the passengers without discussing the equipment malfunction or the poor weather conditions with the flight follower, the NTSB report added.
Investigators believe that the pilot’s failure to switch to instrument flight rules, despite the deteriorating weather, led to spatial disorientation, a condition where pilots lose their sense of direction, ultimately resulting in the fatal crash.
The findings have sparked renewed calls for stricter oversight of charter flight operations and have intensified scrutiny on safety compliance among private aviation providers.