File Photo: The Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection to the NCAA, Michael Achimugu. Fresh security concerns have emerged in Nigeria’s aviation sector after a privately operated aircraft that reportedly landed on a roadway near Asaba, Delta State, subsequently departed the location and returned to Lagos without obtaining regulatory approval.
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, in a statement issued on Wednesday by its Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, confirmed that it had suspended the operator’s permit for non-commercial flights and grounded the aircraft pending a full investigation into the incident.
According to the regulator, the aircraft encountered difficulties while attempting to land at Asaba Airport on Tuesday morning and was forced to execute a missed approach before touching down on a roadway in the Ogwashi-Uku area near Asaba. The authority added that all four crew members on board safely evacuated the aircraft and were transported to Asaba by road, with no injuries recorded.
“Available information indicates that the aircraft conducted a missed approach at approximately 0743 local time while attempting to land at Asaba. Subsequently, the aircraft reportedly landed on a roadway in the Ogwashi-Uku area near Asaba. “The aircraft had four crew members on board.
At this time, no injuries to passengers or crew have been reported,” the statement said. The security concerns stem from the aircraft’s subsequent departure from the location without the required regulatory clearance. “Preliminary information available to the authority indicates that the aircraft subsequently departed the location at approximately 1102 GMT and returned to Lagos without obtaining the requisite regulatory approval,” the NCAA disclosed.
The regulator further revealed that Air Traffic Control was informed only after the aircraft had already become airborne, describing the action as a violation of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations. “The authority has also been informed that Air Traffic Control was notified only after the aircraft had become airborne.
This action constitutes a violation of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations and is currently under investigation by the Authority,” the statement added. Following the aircraft’s arrival in Lagos, the NCAA said it immediately grounded the aircraft, placed the flight crew under regulatory review and suspended the operator’s permit for non-commercial flights pending the outcome of investigations.
“Upon its arrival in Lagos, the NCAA immediately grounded the aircraft pending the outcome of its investigation. The flight crew has been placed under regulatory review while the NCAA conducts further inquiries into the circumstances surrounding the occurrence and the subsequent unauthorised departure of the aircraft,” Achimugu stated.
The authority said it had formally notified the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau and was working with the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency and the operator to determine the full circumstances surrounding the incident. It added that investigators would scrutinise all operational, maintenance, airworthiness and flight-related records before deciding on further enforcement actions.
Reacting to the development, former Military Commandant of Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Group Capt John Ojikutu (retd.), described the incident as a grave security breach, insisting that investigators must establish who, if anyone, disembarked from the aircraft during the landing.