By Jennifer Ugwueke
An Air Peace aeroplane flying an unspecified number of passengers reportedly crashlanded at the runway of the Ilorin International Airport on Friday morning.
The incident forced the airport into an immediate closure with passengers, including some highly-placed Nigerians, left in a total panic over the near-death experience.
Subsequently, all flights to Ilorin have also been cancelled until the evacuation of the plane that crashed around 9.30am on Friday morning upon landing in Ilorin from Abuja.
Reports revealed that the accident was caused by a tyre explosion which sent luggage dropping on passengers from the cabin.
Although no causality was recorded, the runway of the airport had been closed to traffic after the successful evacuation of all the traumatised passengers.
Efforts were being made to relocate the plane from the runway 24-hours after due to the size of the plane, according to a source.
“it is a bigger aircraft and we have no equipment. We are in the process of removing the aircraft. We have been on it for 24 hours,” the source added.
Meanwhile, the Federal Aviation Authority of Nigeria and other agencies are yet to speak on the report, raising suggestions that they were trying to cover it up.
“We were directed to manage the situation,” the source said.
Credit: The Nation