A Skypower Express aircraft made an emergency crash landing at Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport on Tuesday evening, with all four persons aboard successfully rescued.
The Cessna 172, bearing registration number 5N-ASR, encountered difficulties while attempting to land at the Owerri facility after declaring an in-flight emergency.
According to initial reports, the aircraft had taken off from Kaduna International Airport with Port Harcourt International Airport as its intended destination. However, the crew announced an emergency situation during the flight, prompting the pilot to reroute to Owerri for an emergency landing attempt.
The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau confirmed the incident through its Director of Public Affairs and Family Assistance, Bimbo Oladeji, who stated that the agency received formal notification and immediately initiated standard aviation safety procedures.
Oladeji revealed that the aircraft went down in the approach zone of Runway 17 at the airport. Critically, no fatalities were reported as of the time of the announcement.
Mohammed Adeola, spokesperson for the Nigeria Police Force Airport Command in Lagos, corroborated the crash details, noting that the aircraft suffered considerable damage in varying degrees.
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Adeola confirmed that all four crew members present on the aircraft during the incident were successfully evacuated and rescued from the crash site.
The NSIB is conducting a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding the emergency and subsequent crash landing.
