Aircraft develops fault mid-air, makes emergency landing
June 1, 2023 Fausiat Salako-Sanni
A Saudi -Arabia bound Max Air aircraft Boeing 747 carrying 554 pilgrims yesterday developed fault shortly after takeoff from Dutse Airport and was forced to land at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport.
KIIN MEDIA gathered that, the aircraft was ferrying pilgrims from Dutse, Jigawa State to Saudi Arabia for this year’s hajj exercise when the occurrence happened.
The management of Max Air confirmed the occurrence but did not say if the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) have been informed.
A statement by the airline’s management said that the aircraft encountered severe weather conditions.
It added that the wind screen of the aircraft had a slight crack shortly after it took off from Dutse Airport, prompting the aircraft to divert to Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport MAKIA.
The statement said that all the pilgrims have been taken care of and that they have been safely transferred to another aircraft to continue their journey to the holy land.
The airline, according to the statement assured its committed to passengers safety and comfort, adding that the incident was due to adverse weather conditions.
It added that the prompt and professional response by the crew ensured a smooth diversion and landing mitigating any potential risk.
Max Air, the statement added maintains rigorous maintenance standards to ensure the airworthiness of its fleet in compliance with international aviation regulations.
The Max Air occurrence in Kano brings the number of occurrences in Nigeria on Wednesday, May 31,2023 to two.
Earlier, a United Nigeria Airline Embraer 145 airplane with registration number 5N-BWW with 50 passengers on board had skidded off the runway 18L at the Murtala Mohammed Airport 2(MMA2) in Lagos.
The aircraft was flying in from the airport in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, when the incident happened. According to the airline, no passenger was hurt.
