Stephen Ukandu, Umuahia
No fewer than 252 persons escaped death Friday when a United States flag carrier, United Airlines flight UA613, conveying them from Lagos to Washington DC made an emergency landing after about four hours it left the Murtala Muhammad International airport.
Several passengers and crew aboard the aircraft, a Boeing 787-8, were said to have sustained minor injuries as a result of sharp descent by the plane mid air.
The flight, which had 245 passengers, 8 flight attendants and 3 pilots, made a direct return to the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, while outbound over Ivory Coast airspace.
According to one of the passengers, who spoke under anonymity, the incident happened after they had unfastened their seatbelts.
The passenger said: “We had already been served our meals when the plane lost pressure and dropped. We noticed a sharp descent. I hit my head on the ceiling because of the impact. I became unconscious, but one person from the medical team came to attend to me in the middle of the turmoil. The sharp descent happened three times, causing some people to sustain injuries. We spent four hours on air. In the midst of the turmoil, the pilot said we were going to land in Ghana, but we eventually landed in Nigeria.”
