*137 bodies recovered from crash scene

The McDonald Douglas 38 Aircraft, belonging to Dana Airline, which crashed on the outskirts of Lagos, last Sunday, has been grounded since 2002, National Daily can authoritatively reveal.

Already, stakeholders in the Aviation industry have started raising dust as to how the grounded plane, "has found its way back to Nigeria's airspace.

Specifically, the question being asked is: "who actually authorised the Airline to continue operating with the grounded plane."

But officials of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) are "keeping sealed lips" over the revelation.

During the tragic air mis-hap last Sunday, 153 persons were presumed dead.



As at mid-day today, a total of 137 bodies have, so far, been recovered from the crash scene, by combined rescue operations by the Lagos and Ogun

State, the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), National Emergency Management Authority and members of the aviation ministry.

Dana Air is owned by Dana Group, a conglomerate with significant interests in various sectors of the Nigerian economy.

Operators of the Airline, the Dana Group, is the major distributor of Kia motors in Nigeria.

The Group also bottles AquaDana water as well as owning about 10 other different companies dealing in electronics, agriculture, chemicals and other areas.

The company is owned by the Hathiramani family, of Inidan origin. Jacky Hathiramani is the CEO of Dana Air.

Dana Air bought the plane that crashed, last Sunday, from Alaska Airlines, an American regional airline, in February 2009. The plane had been manufactured in 1983 and was used by Alaska Airlines for over 25 years.

The expected useful life of an aircraft is 30 years.

There are indications that last May 3, one of the technical staff of the airline informed management of "the need to ground the aircraft for general check-up."

Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom state was reported to have recently warned the Chief Executive Officer of Dana Air, Jacky Hathiramani, on the need "to have the aircraft go for maintenance."