Helicopter Crash Report Set for National Security Council Review Tomorrow, Public Release Tuesday
The long-awaited report on the tragic August 6 military helicopter crash that claimed eight lives, including two top government ministers, will be presented to Ghana’s National Security Council on Monday, November 10, before going public the next day.
Communications Minister Felix Kwakye Ofosu announced the update in a Facebook post on Sunday, stressing the government’s commitment to transparency in this “national tragedy.”
“Tomorrow, the report of the August 6 helicopter tragedy will be presented to the National Security Council,” he wrote. “It will be made available to the public on Tuesday.”
The crash involved a Ghana Air Force Harbin Z-9EH helicopter (tail number GHF 631) en route from Kotoka International Airport in Accra to Obuasi in the Ashanti Region for an anti-illegal mining event.
The aircraft, carrying eight people, vanished from radar around 9:12 a.m. and slammed into a forested mountainside, sparking a fire that left victims burned beyond recognition.
Among the dead were Defence Minister Edward Omane Boamah and Environment Minister Ibrahim Murtala Muhammed, along with other high-ranking officials.
The incident, one of Ghana’s worst air disasters in over a decade, prompted a three-day national mourning period, with flags at half-mast.
An investigation kicked off immediately, with U.S. forensic experts brought in to help. The flight recorder was recovered the next day, and teams from the Ghana Armed Forces, National Fire and Rescue Service, and other agencies probed possible causes like mechanical failure, human error, or weather issues.
President John Dramani Mahama called it an “unprecedented” loss, vowing answers for grieving families and the nation. Burial delays hit hard, especially for Muslim victims needing DNA tests in South Africa.
Ghanaians have waited months for closure amid whispers of security lapses in the mining sector. The report’s release could spark calls for better aircraft safety and anti-galamsey measures.
Stay tuned for details as the findings drop Tuesday—this could reshape how Ghana handles its skies and resources.
