Confirming the incidence, Dana Air said it aircraft with registration number 5N BKI skidded off the runway at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on Tuesday morning while trying to land.
It expressed relief that no casualty was recorded, stating that it had informed the Accident Investigation Bureau, AIB and the
Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA of the incident.The statement read, “Dana Air regrets to inform the public of a runway incursion involving one of our aircraft, registration number 5N BKI, which was flying from Abuja to Lagos today 23/04/24
“We are relieved to confirm that all 83 passengers and crew onboard the flight disembarked safely without injuries or scare as the crew handled the situation with utmost professionalism.
“We have also updated the AIB and NCAA on the incident and the aircraft involved has been grounded by our maintenance team for further investigation.”
The management thanked the airport authorities and its crew for ensuring the safety of all passengers onboard the aircraft.
The statement added, “We wish to thank the airport authorities, and our crew for their very swift response in ensuring the safe disembarkation of all passengers following the incident and our sincere apologies and appreciation to the passengers on the affected flight for their patience and understanding.
“We wish to reassure our passengers that their safety will always be our top priority, and we are cooperating fully with the relevant authorities to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident.”
This won’t be the first time an airplane from the airline will be reported to have skidded off the runway.
Back in 2018, one of their airplanes skidded off the runway while landing at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa in Rivers State.
Passengers were evacuated by Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN emergency officials. At that time, there was no casualty.
The FAAN attributed the incident to a downpour accompanied by a strong wind and storm.
On June 3, 2012, one of the airline’s flght travelling from Port Harcourt to Lagos, operating on McDonnell Douglas MD-83 aircraft, crashed into a furniture works and printing press building in the Iju-Ishaga neighbourhood of Lagos.
All 153 people on board and 10 more on the ground died.
Meanwhile following today’s incidence, the runway for local airlines at the Lagos airport has been closed till further notice to ascertain the extent of damage and to commence repair works.
