An Air Peace aircraft scheduled for Lagos from Abuja made an emergency stop due to suspected technical faults.
The incident, which occurred in the early hours of Thursday, caused panic among passengers, many of whom took to social media to express their fears.
Prominent human rights lawyer Inihebe Effiong, who posted on his X handle, stated that the flight, scheduled for 6:30 am, was “forcefully” stopped during taxiing.
His post read, “While taxiing on the runway and just before takeoff, our Air Peace flight from Abuja to Lagos, scheduled for 6:30 AM today, was stopped forcefully, resulting in panic and screams from some passengers.”
Effiong added that the captain of the aircraft attributed the incident to a bird strike, bringing into question the recent claims by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria regarding the procurement of multimillion-naira bird strike equipment.
The lawyer said, “The captain attributed the incident to a bird strike. We have been deboarded to await either a replacement or repair of the aircraft.
“Thankfully, whatever happened did not occur after takeoff. It would have been scarier. I am wondering whether there is bird detection radar technology at the domestic wing of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.”
