The deceased first female combat helicopter pilot Tolulope Arotile, who died on Tuesday was knocked down accidentally by an “excited” friend’s car on the reverse inside the Kaduna Air Force Base, Nigerian Air Force has revealed.
“Flying Officer Arotile died on 14 July 2020 at the age of 24, when she was inadvertently hit by the reversing vehicle of an excited former Air Force Secondary School classmate while trying to greet her,” Nigerian Air Force spokesman, Ibikunle Daramola, said in a statement.
“Before her untimely death, Flying Officer Arotile made significant and outstanding contributions to the war against terrorism, armed banditry and other forms of criminality in the country, flying several combat missions,” the statement added.
The deceased sustained serious head injuries with massive hemorrhage
A source told The Crest that the deceased 23-year-old officer went to the popular Mammy market to print some credentials before she was knocked down on her way to her quarters.
The Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Siddique Abubakar, on Wednesday also paid tribute to her, describing described Arotile as a disciplined, intelligent and courageous officer whose loss is irreparable for the force.
Born on 13 December 1995 to the family of Mr and Mrs Akintunde Arotile in Kaduna, Arotile, hails from Ijumu Local Government Area of Kogi State. She attended Air Force Primary School, Kaduna from 2000 to 20055 and Air Force Secondary School, Kaduna from 2006 to 20111 before she later gained admission into the Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna as a member of 64 Regular Course on 22 September 2012.
She was commissioned into the Nigerian Air Force as a Pilot Officer on 16 September 2017 and holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from the Nigerian Defence Academy.
Arotile was winged as the first-ever female combat helicopter pilot in the Nigerian Air Force on 15 October 2019, after completing her flying training in South Africa. She holds a commercial pilot license and also underwent tactical flying training on the Agusta 109 Power Attack Helicopter in Italy.
