50 Dana Airline passengers cheat death after plane's tyres caught fire in Rivers

50 Dana Airline passengers cheat death after plane's tyres caught fire in Rivers

Fifty passengers on a Dana Airline escaped death after the tyres of the aircraft caught fire while taxiing to take-off at the Port Harcourt Airport in Rivers State.

The passengers were hurriedly rescued. The incident occurred on May 2, 2022.

Dana Air Spokesman, Kingsley Ezenwa, in a statement said the aircraft with registration number 5N JOY operating flight 9J 344 from Port Harcourt to Lagos on the 2nd of May, 2022 was set to take off when the pilot in command noticed an anomaly which he queried with the Air Traffic Control (ATC) before embarking on a ramp return in line with strict safety operating procedures.

“However, the impact on the brakes as a result of the aborted take-off affected the aircraft tyres which sparked off while the aircraft was taxiing to repack,” he said.

Ezenwa stated that all 50 passengers onboard the aircraft disembarked safely and that the maintenance team immediately grounded the aircraft pending the conclusion of their investigations.

He said the airline sincerely apologised to all the passengers on the flight for the inconveniences caused due to the eventual cancellation of the flight.

According to him, at Dana Air, the safety of passengers and crew would remain a top priority in all aspects of operations and “we will continue to operate in accordance with the civil aviation regulations and global best practices.’’

On June 3, 2012, a Dana Airline crashed at Iju Ishaga Area of Lagos, killing over 100 people on board.