The pilot of the Aero Contractors aircraft that made an air return on Monday while airborne enroute Abuja from the Port Harcourt International Airport acted professionally when he noticed an engine of the plane was faulty, the Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority NCAA Capt. Musa Nuhu declared on Tuesday.
The Aero Contractor Flight NIG382 encountered bird strike on take-off at the Port Harcourt International Airport (PHIA), Megwa.
Reacting to the incident, Nuhu said that the aircraft, a Boeing 737-500 with the registration number 5N-BKR, was heading to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA), Abuja before the incident on Monday afternoon.
He explained that the pilot made a circuit and returned to base within eight minutes after the incident, maintaining that the action of the pilot was in order.
The aircraft departed PHIA for Abuja with 91 souls onboard; 85 passengers and six crew members at 2:06pm and returned to base at 2:14pm.
The NCAA helmsman added that the incident led to the damage of the aircraft’s blade, stressing that the airline’s engineers were currently fixing the damaged part of the aircraft.
Also, Nuhu said that Aero Contractors brought another aircraft to airlift the passengers to Abuja within 90 minutes of the incident, stressing that the damaged part of the aircraft was undergoing repairs in Port Harcourt.
He said: “Boeing 737-500 aircraft with the registration number: 5N-BKR belonging to Aero Contractors departed Port Harcourt to Abuja, but, during takeoff, it had a bird strike and the pilot continued the take-off, made a circuit and returned to land.
