Former President Olusegun Obasanjo alongside 393 passengers aboard an Ethiopian airline escaped a plane crash on Wednesday.
According to reports, an air crash almost befell the passengers at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport today when passenger aircraft ET-901 overshot “the first touchline” while trying to land. The incident was due to rain and heavy wind at the airport.
The passengers and crew members aboard the aircraft were said to have panicked as the plane hovered between Lagos and Ogun for about 20 minutes after the initial false landing.
Advertisement
The Boeing 777-300 Ethiopian aircraft had departed the Bole International Airport, Addis Ababa, at about 9:10 a.m., Ethiopian time, for Lagos.
Other prominent Nigerians in the plane included the Director General of Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA) Amb. Ayoola Olukanni.
Also in the plane was Prof Samson Tunde Adebayo, the Director of Ports Inspection, National Agency For Food And Drug Administration And Control (NAFDAC) as well as scores of Nigerians and other nationals.
Confirming the incident, the Duty Manager and Chief Customer Service (Nigeria) of Ethiopian Airline, Mr. Otori Otan, told reporters that an air crash would have occurred if the pilot had “continued taxing down after landing on the third touchline.”
Otori said, “But this is an experienced pilot. He realised this immediately.
“Fortunately, the distance between when he realised the situation still permitted him to take off and renegotiate landing.
“These things happen. That is where the sophistication of the aircraft and experience of the cabin crew members come in.
“The aircraft is one of the best you can have around and we are fortunate to have pilots who know their onions ” he said.
Obasanjo and Olukanni had both attended a Stakeholders Dialogue on Continental Trade and Strengthening Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) which ended on Tuesday in Addis Ababa.