By Linus Aleke, Abuja
A Max Air aircraft Boeing 737-300 conveying 68 medical doctors and other passengers made an emergency landing at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja after losing two tyres.
The airline which managed to land on the runway rendered the airport closed for operations indefinitely due to the emergency.
As the plane crash-landed one of its tyres burst into flames. The Aerodrome Rescue and Fire-fighting Service (ARFFS) were swiftly mobilised to put out the fire.
The incident happened at about 3pm and as of 8pm yesterday, the aircraft had yet to be evacuated from the runway causing flight disruptions as several airlines had to reschedule their flights.
Airport officials at the airport disclosed that the runway has been closed, adding that all the passengers were successfully evacuated from the aircraft.
“The Abuja airport runway is hereby shut down until further notice. The aircraft landed safely and all passengers have been evacuated,” an airport official announced.
All Air Peace flights to Calabar, Asaba, Owerri, Warri, and Benin have been cancelled. All these cancellations are outright. They will be communicated when their flight has been rescheduled.
Other scheduled flights to Lagos, Port Harcourt, Kano, and other parts of the country which were initially put on hold, were told to leave the airport at about 8pm following the cancellation of their flights.
At about 11pm, ThisNigeria learnt that the airport runway had been reopened.
*68 medical doctors, others escape death as authority shut down airport indefinitely
One of the Max Air passengers told ThisNigeria that the Abuja-bound flight was coming from Yola in Adamawa State.
The passenger, who craved anonymity, said they had gone to Jalingo in Taraba State for the Annual Delegates Conference of the Nigerian Medical Association, but due to the lack of an operational airport in Jalingo, they had to go by road to Yola to board the aircraft to Abuja.
He said no fewer than 68 medical doctors were on board the aircraft.
According to the medical doctor, the first tyre got burst while they were taking off in Yola, while the second one exploded when they landed in Abuja.
He said, “The first panic started immediately after take when we heard a loud bang and saw one tyre falling off. We continued till Abuja and the other tyre got burst when we landed. The whole aircraft was full of smoke. We were all afraid something bad was going to happen. The aircraft came to a halt on the runway and the fire team was on hand to avert disaster.
“There were 68 medical doctors and other passengers on board the aircraft, including the President of Nigeria Medical Association. We were lucky to have successfully landed. If anything had happened, NMA would have been in a real disaster. The country would have felt it.”
An official of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) told the waiting passengers that the airport runway would be reopened after the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) and other agencies had completed their investigation.
It was learnt that the tyre debris and other particles would have to be thoroughly cleaned from the runway before it will become operational.
At 7.30pm, airport officials finally announced the cancellation of all scheduled flights.
Meanwhile, aviation workers and passengers have blamed the Federal Government for a single runway in the busy Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport in Abuja.
They alleged that the Federal Government had failed in its responsibility for building only one runway on the busy airport.
The aviation staff, who craved anonymity said, “How can we have just one runway in this busy airport in the nation’s capital? This matter had been on the front burner for a long time and I think the Federal Government does not have the whole power to build another one. It is a shame.”
Also, a passenger, Titus Umoh, said, “This is the height of disgrace. How can the Federal Government explain that the busy Abuja airport has only one runway? I can’t believe what they are saying. This is preposterous.”
