Shock gripped the about 95 Abuja-bound Arik Air’s passengers yesterday when a taxi emerged from the blues and rammed into a B737-700 aircraft that was steaming on the tarmac, awaiting takeoff.
The incident, Daily Sun gathered, happened in the afternoon at the Margaret Ekpo International Airport, Calabar.

An eyewitness told Daily Sun that the Arik aircraft with registration number 5N-MJJ just arrived from Lagos and was loading passengers for Abuja at about 2:35pm when suddenly a taxi cab emerged from the Air Force gate within the airport and rammed into the belly of the aircraft.
The witness further said some of the passengers who were still trying to board thought the cab in Cross River state blue-white-blue commercial colours was carrying one of those late travellers rushing to catch the flight but were shocked at the speed with which the driver turned quickly behind the aircraft and crashed into its belly where the fuel tank is situated.

At that point, palpable tension and pandemonium took over as passengers scampered for safety.
When Daily Sun visited the airport at about 3:15pm the Audi 80 cab marked Cross River XA 254 KAM was seen lying under the belly of the aircraft with the bonnet badly damaged. It was speculated that the suspected terrorist was targeting the fuel tank of the aircraft.

Investigations by Daily Sun revealed that the driver of the taxi, which is not registered to operate within the airport, broke through the Airforce station’s two gates at top speed and in the process pulled down the gates and sped straight to the tarmac where the plane was getting set for takeoff.

The suspected terrorist, said to be in his 40’s who hails from Akwa Ibom State, is now at the Zone 6 Police Headquarters undergoing interrogations. As he was being led away from the airport by security operatives, the suspected terrorist was said to have displayed a rare courage that baffled onlookers as he shouted in pidgin. “Even if they kill me today, no problem, after all, that is how Jesus Christ was killed and he went to heaven. So I no care. I de launch war against ungodly people in our country and until we change the war go continue.”

Confirming the incident, the Airport Manager, Mahmud Sani, said, “it is true that the taxi driver came through the Airforce Base gates to carry out his dastardly act, but we thank God he failed in the process. For now, we are investigating the matter as the security operatives have taken over the whole airport for now.”
In a chat with newsmen at the airport shortly after the incident, one of the passengers, Mr. Odiga Odiga, said, “ I was already inside the plane about to take off when the alarm came and we were told to disembark. Initially, we thought it was fire, and everybody scampered down but it was when we got down that we discovered that it was a cab right under the belly of the aircraft.”

Pilot of the aircraft, Simon Robinson, expressed shock like everyone else over the incident. He was in the cockpit when he heard the bump. Odiga, who is the chairman of Cross River State Forestry Commission, described the attack “as one of the security lapses at our airports.” He wondered how a commercial car broke through two gates of the Airforce station and got to the aircraft that was about to take off.

As at the time of going to press, Arik Air engineers numbering about four were seen battling to remove the car from underneath the plane while the company provided another aircraft that flew passengers to their destination.
When contacted, the security operatives at the airport declined comment on the matter, saying ‘we are waiting for the order from above and we cannot talk to you now.”

However, Media Officer of Arik Air, Banji Ola, who confirmed the incident, said it was shocking that a taxi that is a non-ramp vehicle can gain access to the tarmac and hit a stationary plane.
Also speaking on the development, the General Manager, Public Affairs of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Akin Olukunle said the incident was most unexpected.

According to him, the taxi, an Audi 80, apparently was on speed and surprisingly broke through the two gates of the Airforce security before running into the airplane. “The taxi broke through the first gate of the Airforce, broke through the second gate and then ran into the aircraft,” he said.
Olukunle said FAAN immediately dispatched a team of policemen from the Bomb Squad Unit to immediately look into the car and ascertain if it was carrying a bomb or not. He also said the matter was still being investigated to know the motive of the taxi driver in order to know the next line of action.
Arik Air, it was learnt, dispatched another airplane from Lagos to Calabar to fly the passengers to Abuja.

source: http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2010/apr/01/national-01-04-2010-003.htm

this is serious o

is a bad thing that nigeria can not secure its citizen,where were the security operatives,that means if one is travelling,you are on your own.

Nigeria is a failled state. From presidency down, even terrorist and bombers too are failling in their attempts.

Thank God. It is good that he failled some families would have been put in sorrows now