AIR PEACE GROUNDS NEW EMBRAER JET AFTER GROUND HANDLING INCIDENT AT LAGOS AIRPORT
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By Aishat Momoh. O.
Flight operations involving a newly acquired Embraer 195-E2 aircraft belonging to Air Peace were disrupted on Friday following a ground handling incident at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.
The airline confirmed the development in a statement, explaining that the incident occurred after passengers had boarded the aircraft when a luggage conveyor belt vehicle operated by the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company collided with one of the aircraft’s engines.
According to Air Peace, the affected aircraft, with registration number 5N-BYH, was scheduled to operate Flight P47750 from Lagos to Accra at the time of the incident.
The airline said the collision resulted in visible damage to the aircraft, including a dent and tear on the thrust reverser cowling, a key component of the engine cover.
“In line with aviation safety procedures, an immediate technical assessment was carried out, leading to the grounding of the aircraft,” the airline stated.
“All passengers already on board were asked to disembark, resulting in delays and disruptions to scheduled operations.”
Air Peace added that the Embraer 195-E2 involved is part of its recent fleet expansion, noting that the damage sustained was significant and had operational and financial implications, as repairs on modern aircraft engines are capital-intensive.
Confirming the incident, the spokesman of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Mr. Michael Achimugu, disclosed in a post on his X handle that the aircraft was expected to operate up to nine flight sectors, all of which may now be affected.
Achimugu expressed concern over recurring ground handling challenges, stating that Air Peace had suffered multiple technical disruptions through no fault of its own.
“We need to start naming and shaming poorly trained ground handling personnel whose inefficiency costs airlines great reputational, financial and technical damage,” he said.
He added that the NCAA would consider strengthening regulations to impose stiffer sanctions on service providers responsible for such incidents, stressing that airlines should not be held accountable for disruptions arising from ground handling errors.
Achimugu also appealed for passengers’ understanding, noting that although Air Peace maintains standby aircraft, the available backups had already been deployed to address similar situations, while their seating capacities are smaller than that of the damaged Embraer 195-E2.
The incident has once again drawn attention to the impact of ground handling operations on airline safety, reliability and passenger confidence in Nigeria’s aviation sector.
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