By NewsBits
A United Nigeria Airlines flight with 51 passengers and 4 crew members on board skidded off the runway while landing at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos on Friday evening.
The aircraft with registration number 5NBWY was said to be arriving in Lagos from Owerri when it overshot the runway by about 200 metres due to a wet runway. This was confirmed by the Airline spokesperson, Achilleus-Chud Uchegbu, who stated the plane landed safely but overshot the runway.
He went on to say all passengers and crew were promptly evacuated with no casualty recorded and added that relevant authorities were informed about the incident. Also confirming the incident, a post by the National Emergency Management Agency on X (formerly Twitter) corroborated the claims by the airline that 51 passengers and four crew members were onboard.
“A United Nigerian Airline 51 passengers and 4 Crew United Nigeria airline with registration number 5NBWY skidded off the local runway while trying to land under a very high rainfall at about 1848 hours. All passengers evacuated successfully without casualty. The airspace has been opened for operations now,” the post stated.
Apart from the wet runway, the cause of the incident which occurred at about 07:35 pm hours during the heavy downpour remained unknown. Rescue operations began immediately with the arrival of officials from Aerodrome Rescue and Fire Fighting Service (ARFFS) of Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) and other relevant agencies.
A video clip that made the rounds on social media after the incident showed the Embraer 145 regional jet tilted to one side off the runway. Meanwhile, the airport has been temporarily shut down and aviation authorities are currently investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.
