Safety Concerns Over Rising Near Mishaps At Airports

There is mounting concern over the frequent air incidents involving local airlines in the last one year.

The safety concerns were raised by travellers and other stakeholders in Nigeria’s aviation sector

LEADERSHIP Weekend’s investigation revealed that in 2024 alone, domestic airlines recorded seven different incidents in the aviation sector.

Some stakeholders who spoke with our correspondents expressed concern over “these life-threatening incidents” and called for industry regulators to enforce safety standards and operators to comply with them.

Among the incidents were aeroplane excursions (overshooting the runway), air returns due to bird strikes, engine failures, or tyre bursts upon landing at destination airports across the country.

To this end, aviation experts have warned that frequent air incidents may be a precursor to disaster waiting to happen in the sector if not adequately managed or nipped in the bud by the federal government.

For instance, a United Nigeria Airlines plane skidded off the runway on Friday, September 8, 2023, at 6:33 p.m. The plane, an Embraer ERJ145 with registration number 5N-BWY, was carrying 51 passengers and four crew members en route from Abuja to Lagos.

A Challenger CL 601 aircraft, registered as N580KR, operated by Mattini Airline Services Limited, had a runway excursion incident after overshooting the runway at Ibadan Airport on January 26, 2024.

Also, in April 2023, a Dana Air aircraft with 83 passengers and registration number 5N BKI flying from Abuja to Lagos suffered a runway excursion at the Murtala Mohammed Airport, Lagos, after the nose of the aircraft collapsed and the plane veered off the runway into the grassy area.

Again, on Saturday, May 11, 2024, an aircraft belonging to XEJET Airlines skidded off the runway and landed in the grass at the Murtala Mohammed Airport, Lagos. The Airbus with registration 5N-BZZ with 52 passengers on board departed Abuja and landed in Lagos at 11.29 am.

Last week, an Abuja-bound Max Air aircraft made an air return after suffering a bird strike, which led to the aircraft engine catching fire mid-air in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital.

The aircraft, which carried the deputy governor of Borno State, Alhaji Umar Usman Kadafur, and 100 other passengers, returned to the airport 10 minutes into takeoff.

LEADERSHIP Weekend gathered that the incident, which occurred at 7 pm on that fateful day, caused panic among the passengers as the aircraft returned to the Maiduguri International Airport.

Last weekend, the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) announced an investigation into a serious incident involving a Fly Bird HS 125 aircraft with registration number 5NKAL. The aircraft lost both engines shortly after takeoff from Abuja en route to Ghana.

Lastly, on Wednesday, an Allied Air Cargo aircraft with registration number 5N-JRT skidded off Runway 22 at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja. The five people on board were uninjured.

Since 2013, there has not been any serious plane mishap by any commercial airline or schedule operator, but aviation experts have warned that the frequent incidents followed similar patterns to tragic crashes in the early 2000s, peaking in 2005 and 2006 involving Sosoliso Airlines, ADC Airlines, and Bellview Airlines.

They argued that runway excursions could result in loss of life and injury to persons either on board the aircraft or on the ground. Most of the time, excursions damage aircraft, airfield or off-airfield equipment, including other aircraft or buildings struck by the aircraft.

Speaking to LEADERSHIP Weekend, an aviation security analyst, Capt. John Ojikutu (rtd), said to avert serious incidents in the sector, local airline operators must comply with the periodic maintenance programmes approved by the regulatory authorities.

According to the former commandant of Murtala Mohammed Airport, Lagos, regulators must conduct periodic checks, inspections, and audits of local operators.

He said it would be difficult to comment on the cause of the incidents except the National Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) releases investigation reports on such cases.

He said, “It is difficult to know, except the investigation reports are out. However, every operator must ensure it complies with its periodic maintenance programmes approved by the regulatory authorities.

“Also, the regulatory authorities must not only ensure the compliance of the operators to the programmes but must enforce them periodically through checks, inspections and audits,” Ojikutu, a former general secretary of Aviation Round Table Initiative (ARTI) said.

Also speaking on the issue, the general secretary of ARTI, Olumide Ohunayo, stressed the need to probe the runway over frequent excursions.

Ohunayo, the head of Research and Corporate Travel at Zenith Travel & Consul, called for the de-rubberisation of the runway to forestall further excursion.

De-rubberisation is the process of removing rubber deposits from airport runways. It’s important to remove rubber from runways because each time a plane lands, it leaves about 1.5 pounds of rubber on the runway. Rubber build-up can be hazardous and can affect runway friction, which is important for safe landing and takeoff, he explainedd.

“Before now, the airlines were vilified. We have told the world that the problem is with the airlines. Now, we need to look at the runway because this is the same runway that the aircraft are skidding off.

“Now, we need to look at the approach path management, what happened during the period between the tower and the pilot in command. For the runway, in particular, we need to know why aircraft skid off.

“Has the runway been de-rubberised? If yes, was the company certified to do it? If they are, was it inspected by the regulators to ensure that the appropriate things were done? That’s what we need to look at now.

“Maybe the minister will close all the airlines now that it has happened again. The important thing is that we should allow the agencies to direct and lead safety-related issues. We don’t need directives or interference from the executive except regulations. Lessons should be learnt,” Ohunayo stated.

When contacted about the safety concern, NCAA director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection Michael Achimugu said Nigeria is not among the top 15 countries for air accident cases.

Achimugu, however, allayed stakeholders’ and passengers’ fear, saying the apex regulatory agency is alive to its responsibilities of ensuring the safety and security of passengers and stakeholders

“The core responsibility of the NCAA is the safety and security of passengers and stakeholders. Our inspectors have done a great job, and that is why we have only had minor incidents. Nigeria is not among the top 15 countries if you look at the statistics on air accident cases.

“The concerns being expressed by critics is understandable. It is right to show concern. Nobody wants planes to fall from the skies, but the NCAA is alive to its responsibilities,” Achimugu said.