The Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation and Prevention Bureau (AIB Ghana) has revealed that children playing on a field at the Tema Day Care School near the Oninku School Park misunderstood a microlight pilot’s attempt to signal them to clear the area for an emergency landing before the aircraft crashed.
Presenting the final report on Tuesday, May 26, Head of Investigation Captain Paul Fordjour said the pilot flew the aircraft at a low altitude over Tema Township in an effort to draw the attention of pupils playing on the school field.
According to the report, the pilot was attempting to signal the children to vacate the field to allow for an emergency landing.
However, the children reportedly misunderstood the pilot’s intentions and instead waved back at the aircraft while continuing to play.
“Unfortunately, the school children misunderstood the intentions of the aircraft and happily waved back at the aircraft and continued playing on the field. The attempted landing was therefore aborted,” portions of the report stated.
The report further indicated that during a subsequent forced landing attempt, the aircraft was observed in a left-bank attitude shortly before it lost control and crashed within the premises of the Tema Day Care School in Community One, Tema, near the Oninku School Park.
Investigators said the aircraft’s final flight path passed through trees before clipping part of the roof of the daycare facility and eventually crashing into a tree at a dumpsite between two school buildings.
The microlight aircraft, registered 9G-ADV, crashed on March 16, 2026, within the premises of the TMA Day Care Centre near the Oninku Drive Basic School in Tema Community One.
