Terror scare
Passenger forces Air Nigeria aircraft to make air return


Passengers on Air Nigeria’s VK 041 Lagos-Abuja flight were subjected to a horrendous experience Monday morning when the aircraft that was taxiing to take off had to return to base following the strange and unruly behaviour of a male passengers.
The temporary grounding was to enable security officials carry out thorough checks on the airplane before it was allowed to take off at exactly 11.36 a.m.

The same ugly incident occurred on April 8, this year at the Abuja Airport when a passenger suddenly screamed that he was no longer making the Aero Abuja-Lagos flight after screening and boarding had been completed.Monday’s incident, according to the Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr Harold Demuren, was the second in the series to air safety after the heightened security measures at airports.

Demuren said the pilot of the Air Nigeria flight had to return to the airport as a safety and security practice, adding that the irate passenger was immediately de-boarded and handed over to security operatives.
Daily Sun gathered that the action of the passenger angered the passengers on board who wondered why the passenger did not indicate his plans to disembark earlier.

The crew were said to have approached him to know what prompted the sudden change of mind, especially when the airplane was on the verge of take-off.
The passenger was said to be adamant as he insisted that he must be de-boarded, stressing that as a passenger, he had every right to change his mind on flying.
At this point, other passengers, suspected that the passenger might be a terrorist who had planted a bomb or any other dangerous object on the plane and wanted to escape.
Demuren said the passenger was being interrogated by security officials on the rationale behind his action, called air rage in aviation parlance.
He explained that the police bomb detection unit was invited to assist in searching and scanning the airplane to ensure that no explosives were on board.
The NCAA boss said that with the assistance of security agencies, a 100 per cent baggage profiling, identification and reconciliation were carried out to ensure that nothing was amiss with the flight.
He advised that pilots and crew to be vigilant at all times in the interest of safety, recalling the ripple effects of the last December 25 attempt by a Nigerian, Farouk Abdulmutallab, to detonate an explosive aboard a North West Airlines aircraft enroute Detriot, Michigan in the United States.





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