Bird Strike Reportedly Halts Air Peace Flight On Runway, Causes Panic Among Passengers

By Onoja Baba, Nigeria 

A bird strike reportedly caused panic among passengers on an Air Peace flight from Abuja to Lagos after the aircraft was abruptly halted on the runway on Thursday morning.

The flight, scheduled for a 6:30 AM departure, was forced to stop before takeoff, leading to distress among some onboard.

One of the passengers onboard the flight, human rights lawyer and activist Inibehe Effiong, shared the experience on his social media. “While taxiing on the runway and just before takeoff, our Air Peace flight from Abuja to Lagos was stopped abruptly, causing panic and screams among some passengers,” Effiong wrote.

He noted that the captain attributed the incident to a bird strike and confirmed that passengers had been deboarded to await either a replacement aircraft or repairs.

Tagging the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, Effiong expressed relief, stating, “Thankfully, whatever happened did not occur after takeoff. It would have been much scarier.”

He also questioned whether there was a bird detection radar or tracking technology in place at the domestic wing of Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.

African Culture TV contacted Air Peace for further details, but the contact of contact of Air Peace’s spokesperson, Ejike Ndiulo was unreachable asof press time.