Dana Air plane skids off Lagos airport runway

On Tuesday, a Dana Air plane veered off the Lagos airport runway, leading to the diversion of other flights to the international airport.

Confirming the development in a statement, Dana Air said the runway incursion involved one of its aircraft with registration number 5N BKI.

The airline said the aircraft which flew from Abuja to Lagos, had all passengers and crew safe from any casualty.

“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,” Dana Air said.

“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, 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.”

The airline also reassured that passengers’ safety will always be the company’s priority, adding that the management is cooperating fully with the relevant authorities to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident.

X user, BelemaMhart — who boarded another airline — said their plane was diverted just as they were about to land due to the Dana Air incident.

“We were about to land in Lagos and the pilot announced, he had to land at international and Taxi to local airport,” BelemaMhart said.

“On getting here, we learnt Dana Air had issues on landing, that was the reason our pilot was asked to land at the international airport.”

Six months before this incident, the aircraft engine of a Dana Air plane reportedly exploded shortly before take-off from Lagos.

However, in a statement by the company, Dana Air denied the explosion, saying its aircraft only experienced “some operational challenges” leading to “non-scheduled maintenance”.

Also, in July 2022, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) suspended Dana Air for multiple regulatory infractions.

The authority said it suspended the operating licences of the company after “discovering that the airline is no longer in a position to meet its financial obligations and to conduct safe flight operations”.

Dana Air resumed flight operations five months after the suspension.