Max Air’s flight NGL1649, a Boeing 737 with registration 5N-ADB, was involved in a recent incident at Yola Airport, in Adamawa State.
According to The PUNCH, the aircraft, carrying 119 passengers and six crew members, was cleared for takeoff when its rear gear tyres burst.
The initial tyre burst was followed by the failure of the remaining two tyres while attempting to taxi off the runway, leaving the aircraft immobilized.
Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau, Bimbo Oladeji, confirmed that no injuries or fatalities occurred.
Oladeji said, “This evening, Max Air’s flight NGL1649, a Boeing 737 with registration 5N-ADB, carrying 119 passengers and six crew members, was cleared for takeoff from Yola Airport en route to Abuja. During the takeoff roll, a loud bang was heard, identified as the bursting of the rear gear tyres. Initially, two tyres burst. While attempting to taxi off the runway, the remaining two tyres also burst, rendering the aircraft completely disabled. Fortunately, no injuries were reported. A go-team, led by NSIB Director General Captain Alex Badeh Jr., will visit the incident site tomorrow morning to conduct an investigation.”
This event follows a previous NSIB report from 2023, which criticized the airline for overwriting the Cockpit Voice Recorder following a serious incident on May 7, 2023, at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
The report also noted the airline’s disregard for the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority’s directive on continuous CVR overwriting.
During that incident, an object resembling a tyre fell from the departing NGL1648 as it left Abuja for Yola. Despite the aircraft being on the ground in Yola for approximately 30 minutes before the return flight, the landing gear was kept extended for three minutes to cool due to high ground temperatures.
At 2:08 p.m., personnel from the Nigerian Air Force Hangar near runway 35 reported the object falling from the aircraft.
