Following the skidding of the runway at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos by Dana Airline on Tuesday, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority has shut down the 18L runway.
The NCAA also disclosed that the flight recorder of the Dana aircraft had been retrieved by the Nigerian Safety and Investigation Bureau.
The Dana aircraft with registration number 5N BKI, which was coming from the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja, had 83 passengers and crew on board when it skidded off the Lagos airport runway while trying to land around 10:15 am.
The aircraft was stuck in a bushy area close to the runway, but passengers and crew members disembarked unhurt.
Emergency responders, including the airport’s Aerodrome Rescue and Firefighting Services, mobilised to the scene to salvage the situation.
Unconfirmed reports said the plane veered off the runway shortly after landing and sank in the green field.
The passengers have been reportedly secured and served refreshments.
In a statement signed by the Acting Director General of NCAA, Capt. Chris Najomo, on Tuesday, the agency said the NSIB had begun an investigation into the reason behind the unfortunate incident.
The NCAA boss further explained that the nose-wheel of the aircraft had retracted, the nose of the aircraft collapsed and the aircraft veered off the runway into the grassy area.
“In accordance with statutory procedures, the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau has commenced its investigation into the occurrence,” it stated.
NCAA, however, reiterated its commitment to a safe and secure aviation sector.
“In furtherance to this commitment, the authority will be looking to implement the safety recommendations expected from the NSIB investigation while it carries out its own in-house safety assessment of the occurrence.
The travelling public is, hereby, assured of NCAA’s unrelenting efforts in holding all operators and service providers in the sector to the highest international safety standards,” the NCAA boss added.
Reacting earlier in a statement signed by the Head of Corporate Communications of the airline, Kingsley Ezenwa, apologised to the passengers over the unfortunate incident, noting that all the 83 passengers were safe.
“We are relieved to confirm that all 83 passengers and crew onboard the flight disembarked safely without injuries or scare as the crew handled the situation with utmost professionalism.
“We have also updated the AIB and NCAA on the incident and the aircraft involved has been grounded by our maintenance team for further investigation.
“We wish to thank the airport authorities, and our crew for their very swift response in ensuring the safe disembarkation of all passengers following the incident and our sincere apologies and appreciation to the passengers on the affected flight for their patience and understanding.”
Also, the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau, Mrs Bimbo Oladeji, in a statement, stressed that the agency had commenced an investigation into the happening, an exercise she said would be concluded in 30 days.
According to Oladeji, preliminary investigations by NSIB showed that the Dana plan had a technical problem with its landing gear, which caused it to ram into directional control problems.
“The aircraft had a technical problem with its landing gear and experienced directional control problems after landing, which made it veer off the runway to the left and travel onto the grassy area near the Runway 18L link 6 turn-off point. Thankfully, there are no reported fatalities or injuries. As a precautionary measure, Runway 18L at MMA was temporarily closed following the incident,” she remarked.
Oladeji further stressed that an on-the-spot investigation by the agency’s team “had retrieved the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder, which will be taken to our lab for data download”.
“The transcript from Air Traffic Control and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria will also be included for forensic analysis and further investigation. The NSIB team has also measured the aircraft’s veering point from the runway to its final stop on the grass.
“Crew members have been interviewed and undergone toxicology tests. As of today, all stakeholders involved in the operation of this aircraft, including the manufacturer, are being notified for their comments to be included in our report.”
She declared that the NSIB’s investigation of would examine all aspects, including the airworthiness status of the aircraft, operational policies, human factors, weather conditions, health and mental status of the crew, aircraft maintenance records, and any previous incidents involving this aircraft’s landing gear system.
“In accordance with international aviation safety protocols, a preliminary report containing a summary of basic fact-finding about the incident will be released within 30 days. After which a final report with safety recommendations will be issued at the conclusion of the investigation,” she noted.
SOURCE: PUNCHNG
