An Arik Air Boeing 737-7GL aircraft had an in-flight engine issue on Wednesday while conducting a planned domestic trip from Lagos to Port Harcourt, according to confirmation from the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB).
The aircraft, registered 5N-MJF, was said to have been forced to divert and made a safe, incident-free landing at Benin Airport.
Bimbo Olawumi Oladeji, the NSIB’s Director of Public Affairs and Family Assistance, announced the revelation in a statement.
The agency claims that during the cruise portion of the trip, the flight crew noticed unusual signals coming from one of the aircraft’s engines.
Following standard operating procedures in the tight environment, the pilots decided to divert to the closest appropriate airfield and performed a precautionary shutdown of the impacted engine.
All of the passengers and crew disembarked normally after the plane made a safe landing at Benin Airport. There were no reported injuries.
Based on an initial visual examination, the NSIB reported that first observations showed considerable damage to the afflicted engine.
“Based on an initial visual evaluation, preliminary observations at Benin Airport indicate serious damage to the afflicted engine. The NSIB stated it has started an investigation in accordance with its statutory authority and international norms under ICAO Annex 13, the statement said.
In order to secure the aircraft and collect pertinent evidence, it further stated that an assessment team had been sent to the location.
According to the statement, “the assessment team is on their way to Benin to secure the aircraft, document evidence, interview pertinent witnesses and personnel, and recover flight data and cockpit voice recorder information.”
The agency further revealed that in order to ascertain the chronology of events and pinpoint any contributing factors, it is collaborating closely with Arik Air, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), and other important parties.
It is anticipated that the investigation’s findings will inform safety guidelines meant to stop future occurrences of this kind.
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