An Aero Contractor Flight NIG382 heading to the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on Monday encountered a bird strike on take-off at the Port Harcourt International Airport (PHIA), Rivers State.
The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), which confirmed the incident, however, said the pilot acted professionally by returning to base immediately.
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It was learnt that the aircraft, a Boeing 737-500 with the registration number 5N-BKR departed PHIA for Abuja with 91 souls’ onboard comprising 85 passengers and six crew members at 2:06 pm and returned to base at 2:14 pm.
Director-General of the NCAA, Capt. Musa Nuhu, in a chat with aviation journalists said the pilot acted professionally in returning to base after it encountered the bird strike.
Nuhu explained that the pilot made a circuit and returned to base within eight minutes after the incident, maintaining that the action of the pilot was in order.
According to him, the bird strike led to the damage of the aircraft’s blade, which the airline’s engineers were fixing as of the time of filing this report.
Nuhu confirmed that Aero Contractors brought another aircraft to airlift the passengers to Abuja within 90 minutes of the incident, stressing that the damaged part of the aircraft was undergoing repairs in Port Harcourt.
He said no life was at risk because of the incident.
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