Crashed Military Aircraft Pilot Was UNIBEN Student …Course Mates Mourn

By Adesina Soyooye

Squadron Leader Mahmud Aburimen, the Pilot of the ill-fated Airforce Aircraft and who perished along with 24 others was a student of the University of Benin.

He was a postgraduate student of the Department of Mass Communication of the University and his death in the plane crash have thrown his colleague-students into deep mourning and agony and grief.

Recall that the nation was thrown into  mourning on Tuesday, October 5, when the news of the crash at Igbokoda, Ondo State.

The Airplane was on its way from Benin to Lagos, on what was said to be a routine mission.

According to the reports, the Pilot, Squadron Leader Aburimen was at the University last Friday to make up  for a test organised by one of his lecturers.

Desmond Odiah, his class representative, described Aburimen as “a gentle and disciplined student who, despite the demands of his military duties, made efforts to attend classes.”

The two of them, Odiah explained  started the Master’s Degree programme together from the Postgraduate Diploma (PGD) level.

He said “We were currently doing our Master’s together, but we actually started from Postgraduate Diploma. We did PGD together for one year and, after the results, we went for Master’s together too.

“I became closer to him when I became the class representative for the Master’s programme. He was always reaching out to me privately about classes, anything that had to do with academics.

“Aburimen was a perfect gentleman who  was not confrontational and preferred to keep a low profile in class.

“He didn’t have issues. Every single time he was in the class, he was always at the back with his cap on. So he was a perfect gentleman that didn’t want issues, didn’t want any problems.

“His demanding military responsibilities did not prevent him from making efforts to keep up with his academic work.

“Regardless of his tedious work and responsibility, he was able to try as much as possible to attend classes. He was even around on Friday, this last week Friday, for a make-up test.

“I actually reached out to him about the test, so that was the last time we spoke. He told me that he was in school already for the make-up test. He was somebody who believed in due process.”

Sadly, he has gone.