By FORTUNE ABANG

The Nigerian Air Force C-130 crew, earlier detained in Burkina Faso and released on Thursday, has continued its mission from the country to Portugal with the same aircraft.

The crew, comprising 11 Nigerian personnel, was on a mission to Portugal for scheduled aircraft maintenance when it made an emergency landing in Burkina Faso.

The emergency landing, which occurred in Bobo-Dioulasso on Dec. 8, 2025, was described as a precautionary measure following a technical issue with the aircraft.

The Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr Kimiebi Ebienfa, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the crew resumed its journey to Portugal after engagements between Nigerian and Burkina Faso authorities.

Ebienfa said the release of the crew followed diplomatic interventions by a high-powered Nigerian delegation dispatched to Burkina Faso by President Bola Tinubu.

The delegation was led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar, and included the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Amb. Mohammed Mohammed; the Chief of Policy and Plans, Nigerian Air Force, Air Vice Marshal A. Y. Abdullahi; Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to ECOWAS, Amb. Olawale Awe; and the Chief of Protocol in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Wahab Akande. (NAN)

•PHOTO: Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar, alongside some members of the country’s delegation and crew members of the Nigerian Air Force C-130 in Burkina Faso. (NAN)