Air Peace lands with burst tyre at Abuja airport

  • Incident pattern worry experts

 Air Peace Airlines continues incidents continued unabated as the airline’s aircraft with registration 5N-BQO had a burst tyre as it landed at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

The aircraft took off from Benin airport. Immediately the incident happened at about 11.48 am yesterday, the crew managed to taxi with the burst tyre to safety where it was inspected and a new tyre was fixed. The matter had since been reported to the Accident Investigation Bureau [AIB] for proper investigation.

The recent incident brings to about four the number of incidents involving the airline in quick succession in less than six months; a pattern experts said are worrisome.

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Just last week Saturday, Air Peace B737-500 with registration 5N-BRN overshot the runway and skidded into the bush at the Port Harcourt Airport, Nigeria. On-board the aircraft were 87 passengers and six crew members, however nobody was injured.

The flight P47291 departed Abuja Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (ABV) and arrived in Port Harcourt International Airport (PHIA) around 1 hour late.

June 5, 2019, there was a serious incident involving the airline’s Boeing 737-300 aircraft with Registration Marks 5N-BUK.

The said incident occurred while the aircraft was on approach to Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos from Port Harcourt. The aircraft was said to have experienced a hard landing as it touched down on the runway (18R).

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A damage assessment on the aircraft by AIB revealed that the air-craft made contact on the runway with the starboard engine cowling as obvious from various scrapes, scratches and dents, an evidence of tyre scouring on the sidewalls of the No. 4 tyre.

There was also visible damage to the right-hand engine compressor blades.

The aircraft has since been on ground, awaiting implementation of the hard landing inspections recommended by the aircraft manufacturer, the Boeing Company.

On December 14, 2018, a Boeing 737-300, belonging to the airline, with registration marks 5N-BUO, en route Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu from Lagos, was involved in a serious incident at about 10:44hrs.

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“A careful investigation of the incident by the Bureau, revealed that the aircraft was relocated from Enugu where the incident occurred, back to Lagos and all relevant information on the CVR was overwritten, thereby making it impossible for the Bureau to retrieve the actual data,” AIB said.

Wole Shadare