A Triton Aviation private jet was forced to return to Abuja after losing a door shortly after take-off, prompting the crew to issue a Mayday distress call.
The CL60 aircraft, registered as T7-SEI and operating under flight identification DWC052, was travelling from Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, to Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, when the incident occurred at about 4:20 pm on Thursday.
An incident report obtained by our correspondent indicated that the crew alerted air traffic control after discovering that a door had opened while the aircraft was airborne.
According to the report, the jet departed Runway 22 at 4:17 pm UTC and was approximately three nautical miles from the airport, ascending through 3,000 feet, when the pilots declared an emergency.
“Mayday, Mayday, Mayday,” the crew transmitted, according to the report.
Following the distress call, the approach radar controller instructed the aircraft to return to Abuja for an emergency landing.
Airport emergency services were promptly mobilised, with fire and rescue teams, medical personnel and other responders placed on standby. Fire crews were also positioned at designated locations to prepare for the aircraft’s arrival.
At approximately 4:29 pm UTC, the crew contacted the control tower to ask whether the missing door could be seen from the ground.
The duty air traffic controller attempted to inspect the aircraft using binoculars but could not determine whether the door was open because of its position. The crew was subsequently informed that the controller could not confirm its condition visually.
The aircraft touched down safely on Runway 22 at about 4:34 pm UTC, roughly 14 minutes after the Mayday call was made.
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After the landing, the controller observed that the door was no longer attached to the aircraft’s fuselage.
The jet was subsequently moved to the international apron extension, where it was parked with the assistance of a marshaller.
Separately, a video obtained by our correspondent showed an object believed to be the missing aircraft door, reportedly recovered by farmers from a farm in the Abuja area.
In the footage, a man whose identity was not established explained that the farmers discovered the object while returning from their farm.
“This is what we found as we were returning from our farm. It fell from a plane, but we don’t know much about its identity. As I am sending it to you, sir, just check it,” he said.
The number of people aboard the aircraft at the time of the incident remained unknown as of the time of filing this report.
The Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, Michael Achimugu, confirmed the occurrence but explained that the investigation fell within the jurisdiction of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau.
Although the NSIB had yet to release an official statement, a source within the agency confirmed the gravity of the incident, adding that its management had deployed investigators to examine the circumstances surrounding the emergency.
The source also indicated that the bureau would issue a statement on the incident.
Efforts to reach Triton Aviation, the operator of the aircraft, for comments were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.