Benin Airport’s runway has been temporarily closed after an Enugu Air aircraft suffered a runway excursion on landing, disrupting flight operations into and out of the airport. The disruption was confirmed on Thursday after Air Peace announced the suspension of all its flights to and from Benin Airport, attributing the cancellations to the temporary closure of the runway. Enugu Air later confirmed the incident, saying all passengers and crew safely disembarked the aircraft without injuries or casualties. What they are saying Air Peace said the temporary closure of Benin Airport’s runway had forced it to suspend flights to and from the airport.
The airline described the disruption as beyond its control and appealed to affected passengers for understanding. “The temporary suspension and cancellation of affected flights are necessitated by circumstances beyond the airline’s control.”
Air Peace advised affected passengers to contact its customer care centre for rebooking assistance and other enquiries. The airline said the safety and wellbeing of its passengers and crew remain its foremost priority.
More insights Enugu Air confirmed that one of its aircraft experienced a runway excursion after landing at Benin Airport. The airline said the aircraft has been secured while the relevant aviation authorities have been notified in line with established procedures. All passengers and crew safely disembarked the aircraft without injuries or casualties. According to video footage seen by Nairametrics, the aircraft came to rest in a grassy area beside the runway after the excursion. The footage also showed passengers leaving the aircraft with their belongings under the supervision of airport personnel. As of the time of filing this report, neither the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) nor the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) had issued an official statement on the incident or the temporary runway closure. What you should know The Benin runway excursion comes weeks after the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) released a preliminary report into the June 10 incident involving a VMO Aero-operated Bombardier Challenger 601-3A that mistakenly landed on a road under construction near Asaba Airport.
The NSIB report revealed conflicting accounts among the three pilots over the aircraft’s final approach and highlighted shortcomings in cockpit coordination. Investigators also found that the Asaba control tower’s voice recording system was unserviceable during the occurrence. Following the incident, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) grounded the aircraft after it returned to Lagos without the required regulatory approval.
While the Asaba investigation is ongoing, the NSIB has recommended stronger emergency response procedures, improved coordination among aviation agencies and more reliable air traffic communication recording systems to enhance flight safety.
