The Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) has released a preliminary report on the accident involving an aircraft operated by the Nigeria Police Air Wing, and three serious incidents pertaining to planes operated by Max Air, Air Peace and United Nigeria.
In a recent statement signed by AIB’s General Manager Public Relations, Mr. Tunji Oketunbi, it is stated that the details of the preliminary report refer to the following:
- An accident involving a Bell 429 helicopter owned and operated by Nigeria Police Air Wing with nationality and registration marks 5N-MDA which occurred on January 26, 2022 at the Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Airport, Bauchi.
- A serious incident which occurred at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja on November 21, 2021 involving a parked Boeing 737-300 jet operated by Max Air with nationality and registration marks 5N-DAB, which was involved in an on-ground collision with the lavatory service truck belonging to Skyway Aviation Handling Company (SAHCO) Plc. bearing the fleet number 9/5.
- A serious incident which occurred on November 22, 2021 involving a Boeing 737-300 aircraft operated by Air Peace with nationality and registration marks 5N-BUQ, which occurred after the aircraft airlifted from Sam Mbakwe Airport in Owerri on its way to Lagos.
- A serious incident which occurred on November 17, 2021 involving an Embraer 145LR airplane operated by United Nigeria with nationality and registration marks 5N-BWW, which occurred at 4,000 feet as the aircraft was climbing out of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.
The statement released by AIB further reiterates that the report is not final, as information therein is presented as it was gathered from various sources such as the scenes of the accident, incidents; Flight Data Monitoring (FDM); eye witness reports; Health and Usage Monitoring Systems (HUMS) and flight recorders.
As such, investigations are still ongoing, and the final report will be released at the end of the investigative process.
