The pilot of the Nigerian Air Force MI-171 jet that crashed in Niger State, Flight Lieutenant Ibrahim Adamu Abubakar, has been laid to rest in Zaria, Kaduna State. A prayer was conducted at the Haruna Danja Jumma’at mosque, led by the Chief Imam of the mosque, Sheikh Muhammad Sani Gumi.
Family members, as well as hundreds of mourners from various walks of life, attended the burial. The family had previously performed a proxy funeral prayer (Salatul Gha’ib) for the deceased at the Gaskiya Corporation mosque in Tudun Jukun, Zaria, when they were unable to receive the pilot’s body.
Abubakar Adamu, the elder brother of the deceased, explained that the family performed the proxy funeral prayer as a religious duty when they believed they might not retrieve the pilot’s body. However, since the pilot’s remains were later discovered, the family also performed another funeral prayer for him as a religious obligation.
The pilot’s burial reflects the somber and respectful process that follows the loss of a serviceman in the Nigerian Air Force.