Facts emerged yesterday on the probable reasons the
chartered Embraer 120 aircraft carrying the corpse
of former Ondo State governor, Chief Olusegun
Agagu, crashed on Thursday minutes after it took off
from the Murtala Mohammed Airport, Lagos.
The ill-fated plane reportedly had 20 passengers, 13
of which died while the seven others were left in
critical conditions. Among the casualties was the Ondo
State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Mr. Deji
Falae, who was said to be the eldest son of elder
statesman and candidate of the AD/APP alliance in the
1999 presidential election, Chief Olu Falae.
Also dead in the crash were Mr. Tunji Okusanya, the
proprietor of Nigeria’s most popular casket making/
marketing outfit, MIC Funeral Company, his son Tunji
Okusanya Jnr, no fewer than four of his staff, the
pilot of the plane, Captain Yakubu and five others.
While the ill-fated 30-passenger aircraft was said to
have only 20 people on board, a reliable aviation source
insisted yesterday that the plane might have crashed
because it was overloaded in some other ways.
The source, who pleaded not to be named because of
the sensitive nature of the issue, told our
correspondent that at the time it crashed, the
aircraft had five-hour endurance fuel, which
constituted unnecessary burden on the plane because
it only needed just about a third of that quantity of
fuel for a return trip from Lagos to Akure.
The aviation expert said: “It is true that the plane is
designed for 30 passengers and there were only 20
passengers on board, but it was loaded with too much
fuel, and that is professionally wrong.
“The aircraft had five-hour endurance fuel for a
return journey that would not take more than one hour.
“Remember that the aircraft was also carrying a
corpse, and you know that the weight of a corpse is
more than that of a living person. This combined with
the weight of the casket and the volume of fuel in the
aircraft probably weighed it down as it approached
the air.”
The foregoing, the source said, was compounded by
the fact that the two engines of the aircraft might
not have been in perfect conditions. Hence, when one
of the engines packed up, the weight of the aircraft
became too much for the other.
“As it taxied for take-off, the pilot probably realised
that the plane had lost an engine, but he believed that
he was already at a point that we in the aviation sector
call the “critical point of no return.” If he had aborted
the flight at that point, the impact would have been
much more.
“The pilot probably had to continue to go up or ‘ pull
off ‘ in the hope that the other engine could take the
aircraft to a level where it could return to land and
abort the flight. But whereas it is possible to stabilise
with one engine when an aircraft is in the air, it is very
dangerous to take off or land with one engine.”
By the account of the airliners, the ill-fated aircraft’s
last flight was in August while it underwent a A-check
in June, meaning that it did not fly in the whole of
September. The expert said this was probably so
because the aircraft , usually used for chartered
services, was not hired during the period, which
underscores the need for vigorous check by ground
officers who certified it fit to be airborne.
The aviation expert also said communication between
the pilot and the traffic controllers at the airport
could not have been possible because the aircraft had
not gained altitude for it to come under aerial radar
control
Explaining the various stages of control before an
aircraft is airborne, the source said: “There are four
stages of control. The first stage is on the ground
when the necessary checks are made to certify the
aircraft fit. The second is the tower stage where the
control tower declares the captain free to take off.
“The third is the approach stage where the control
tower monitors the aircraft to see that it stabilises.
The fourth is the radar stage when the plane is
airborne and communication between the pilot and air
traffic controllers is possible.
“The aircraft was at the third stage which is
‘approach’ when it crashed on Thursday.”
The propeller aircraft belonging to Associated Airlines
crashed into the disused compound of the Pipelines
and Products Marketing Company (PPMC), a subsidiary
of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)
at the premises of the Murtala Mohammed
International Airport around 9.32 am on Thursday
minutes after it took off from the local wing of the
airport.
The chartered plane had hit the wall demarcation and
broke into two before it went up in flames after
about 25 minutes.

Read more: Nation Newspapers

thats Nigeria for u. time things end

Hebunn:
While the ill-fated 30-passenger aircraft was said to
have only 20 people on board, a reliable aviation source
insisted yesterday that the plane might have crashed
because it was overloaded in some other ways.
The source, who pleaded not to be named because of
the sensitive nature of the issue, told our
correspondent that at the time it crashed, the
aircraft had five-hour endurance fuel, which
constituted unnecessary burden on the plane because
it only needed just about a third of that quantity of
fuel for a return trip from Lagos to Akure.
The aviation expert said: “It is true that the plane is
designed for 30 passengers and there were only 20
passengers on board, but it was loaded with too much
fuel, and that is professionally wrong.
“The aircraft had five-hour endurance fuel for a
return journey that would not take more than one hour.
“Remember that the aircraft was also carrying a
corpse, and you know that the weight of a corpse is
more than that of a living person. This combined with
the weight of the casket and the volume of fuel in the
aircraft probably weighed it down as it approached
the air.”
The foregoing, the source said, was compounded by
the fact that the two engines of the aircraft might
not have been in perfect conditions. Hence, when one
of the engines packed up, the weight of the aircraft
became too much for the other.
“As it taxied for take-off, the pilot probably realised
that the plane had lost an engine, but he believed that
he was already at a point that we in the aviation sector
call the “critical point of no return.” If he had aborted
the flight at that point, the impact would have been
much more.
“The pilot probably had to continue to go up or ‘ pull
off ‘ in the hope that the other engine could take the
aircraft to a level where it could return to land and
abort the flight. But whereas it is possible to stabilise
with one engine when an aircraft is in the air, it is very
dangerous to take off or land with one engine.”
By the account of the airliners, the ill-fated aircraft’s
last flight was in August while it underwent a A-check
in June, meaning that it did not fly in the whole of
September. The expert said this was probably so
because the aircraft , usually used for chartered
services, was not hired during the period, which
underscores the need for vigorous check by ground
officers who certified it fit to be airborne.

@the coloured, upon all the money looted, upon all the funds misappropriated daily, they couldn't afford a bigger and more comfortable aircraft since traveling by the roads them and their fellow governors ignored, refused to build and left for the masses to ply and die, are not "good" enough for them to use. Karma is indeed a biyatch. They fall sick and get flown to abroad while refusing to upgrade the hospitals back at home.

@the bolded, the level of incompetent and daft airport officials/aircraft maintenance crew littering our various airports is sickening to say the least. An aircraft that hasn't flown in a month did undergo rigorous checkup and maintenance before being certified/deemed fit to fly. What a buncha of quack engineers who couldn't do their work efficiently, leaving the pilot in a point of "no return". Naija, I weep!!