The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau has said that it conducted toxicology tests on the pilot and crew of XeJet Airline’s Embraer 145 aircraft to determine the cause of the runway overrun incident.
The test was carried out on the crew members after an Anbuja-Lagos aircraft with 49 passengers, skidded off the Lagos Airport runway on Saturday.
The Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at NSIB, Mrs. Bimbo Oladeji, made this known in a statement and added that all tests returned negative results, indicating no presence of impairing substances.
“Preliminary fact-finding revealed that the incident occurred at 1:00 pm on Saturday, May 11, 2024, at the domestic wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos. The aircraft with registration number 5N BZZ, operated by XeJet Airline on behalf of NG Eagle Airlines, was completing a scheduled flight from Abuja to Lagos with 49 passengers and 3 crew members onboard. The flight departed Abuja at 11:10 a.m., maintaining a cruising altitude of Flight Level 280.
“It was cleared for landing after being held for 50 minutes in Lagos, waiting for the weather to clear. The aircraft then landed on Runway 18 Left (18L) and went off the end of the runway to the left of the centreline. It stopped on the grass verge approximately 326 meters from the threshold of Runway 36R.
“The captain subsequently shut down the engines and commanded an evacuation through a controlled disembarkation. Three exit doors were used for the evacuation process, including two over-wing windows and one forward exit door. There were no reported injuries or fatalities as a result of the incident.
“However, damage was sustained to the aircraft’s nose landing gear and both main landing gear tyres.
“NSIB was notified of the incident by the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA, at 1:20 PM, and a Go Team was promptly deployed to the incident site, arriving at 1:51 PM.
“NSIB’s investigation of this incident will examine various aspects, including the airworthiness status of the aircraft, operational policies, human factors, weather conditions, health and mental status of the crew, aircraft maintenance records, and any previous incidents involving this aircraft’s landing gear system. Air traffic control data, cockpit voice recordings, and flight data recorders will also be downloaded and examined.
“In accordance with international aviation safety protocols, a preliminary report containing a summary of basic fact-finding about the incident will be released within 30 days. A final report with safety recommendations will be issued at the conclusion of the investigation.
“During the course of the investigation, NSIB will collaborate with relevant stakeholders including Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, Nigerian Meteorological Agency, as well as other relevant institutions and specialists, to gather all necessary information, data, and evidence concerning the operation of the flight.
“This investigation aims to identify any safety deficiencies and recommend measures to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future. The objective of this investigation is to arrive at the cause of the incident and the factors that led to it, and to issue safety recommendations to prevent such occurrences in the future. Updates will be provided as the investigation progresses.”
