An official investigation into the tragic August 6, 2025, military helicopter crash has concluded that the disaster was caused by a sudden loss of altitude resulting from a powerful downdraft.
The findings, released in a public briefing on November 11, 2025, by the investigative committee, offer new insights into the environmental factors that led to the crash.
The military helicopter, a Harbin Z-9EH (tail number GHF 631), was on an anti-illegal mining operation when it tragically lost radar contact and crashed in the Adansi Akrofuom District of the Ashanti Region. The aircraft had departed Accra earlier that morning and was en route to Obuasi.
Captain (Rtd) Paul Forjoe, a member of the investigation team, explained that the crash was caused by “a sudden loss of altitude and lift due to a downdraft,” which occurred while the aircraft was flying over high terrain. He noted that the loss of altitude was not linked to a change in power or pitch altitude, a scenario typical of downdrafts, which are sudden downward air currents often associated with changing weather and terrain conditions.
The investigative committee, chaired by the Acting Minister for Defence, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, has emphasized that multiple factors, including technical, operational, and environmental, contributed to the crash. While the downdraft was the primary cause, the committee also recommended improvements in flight training for pilots operating in mountainous and unpredictable environments, where downdrafts are more common.
In its final report, the committee urged the Ghana Air Force to enhance its protocols for pre-flight weather assessments and improve safety measures to better equip pilots to handle such sudden atmospheric changes.
