From Sani Dalhatu, Zaria
Captain Shehu Iyal, a former Special Assistant on Aviation Matters to Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan, has passed away.
A family source in Zaria confirmed that Iyal died on Thursday after a prolonged illness.
The late aviation expert was the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Afri-Air and played a prominent role in Nigeria’s aviation sector for several decades.
Captain Iyal, a 1977 graduate of Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), was also an alumnus of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, Zaria.
Over the years, he held various strategic positions, including Chairman of the Presidential Implementation and Monitoring Committee on the development of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.
He also chaired the Presidential Committee on the Improvement of Airport Security and Drug-Related Problems and served as a board member of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), where he led the commission’s aviation committee.
The family source said Captain Iyal will be buried in Zaria on Thursday according to Islamic rites.
