Passengers injured as ‘technical issues’ force US-bound flight to return to Lagos

A United Airlines flight UA613, on Thursday, reportedly made an emergency landing at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

The Boeing 787-8 flight was en route to Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) from Lagos.

An official of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), who did not want to be named, confirmed the development to TheCable.

The source, however, did not provide details on the nature of the emergency.

“There was truly an emergency landing by United Airline yesterday. Some passengers sustained minor injuries, but there were no casualties,” the official said.

According to media reports, about 245 passengers, eight attendants and three pilots were on the flight at the time of the incident, which occurred over Ivory Coast airspace.

A passenger, narrating the ordeal to Vanguard, said the incident happened after they had unfastened their seatbelts.

“We had already been served our meals when the plane lost pressure and dropped. We noticed a sharp descent,” the passenger said.

“I hit my head on the ceiling because of the impact. I became unconscious, but one person from the medical team came to attend to me in the middle of the turmoil.

“The sharp descent happened three times, causing some people to sustain injuries. We spent four hours on air. In the midst of the turmoil, the pilot said we were going to land in Ghana, but we eventually landed in Nigeria.”

Responding to TheCable’s enquiry via email, the airline attributed the incident to a technical issue.

“Our flight from Lagos, Nigeria to Washington D.C. returned to Lagos to address a technical issue. After landing safely, the aircraft was met by first responders to address reports of minor injuries to several passengers and crew,” United Airlines said.

On December 1, 2021, United Airlines commenced flight operations from Washington, United States, to Lagos.

The service marked the airline’s return to Nigeria since it left in 2016 over foreign exchange (FX) crisis.