Users on Facebook Live and Twitter documented the Sudanese Air Force (SAF) flying above the city and striking the RSF targets.

The Sudanese Armed Forces later said that the explosion occurred due to a fire caused by an aviation fuel depot inside the airport.

[18] Later on 17 April 2023, it was shown by an analysis made by the New York Times via satellite, from both Maxar and Planet Labs, that showed that around 20 planes were destroyed during the attacks at the airport.

[19] The ongoing fighting in the vicinity of the airport and the destruction of civilian aircraft posed significant challenges for evacuating foreigners from the area.

As a result, many individuals had no choice but to undertake long journeys by car to Port Sudan, approximately 650 km northeast of Khartoum.

[22] Furthermore, the destruction of the World Food Programme's aircraft severely impacted the organization's capacity to transport staff and deliver assistance to people across the country.