Governor Ademola Adeleke has recounted how he escaped a plane crash at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
The Osun governor and some of his aides had boarded a private jet owned by his elder brother at the domestic wing of Lagos airport going to Abuja on September 5, when the aircraft lost its two engines by being on fire on the runway before taking off.
The claim at the time was that birds had built their nest in one of the engines which resulted in Foreign Object Damage (FOD) that made the aircraft experience high temperature, which resulted into the explosion.
However, Adeleke on Sunday, September 17, dismissed the speculation and argued that bird nests are made with straws not bidding wires.
Through his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, the governor said:
“There are strong indications that the two aircraft engines were tampered before boarding. The highly technically equipped aircraft was well maintained with the best technical crew and was never an unused platform where birds could build nests.
“Contrary to the claim by the hanger owner that birds’ nests caused the incident, birds’ nests are made with straws not bidding wires as in this case.
“The near-fatal incident was averted shortly after boarding and less than two minutes after commencement of taxing on the tarmac. An early warning noise from the engines immediately prompted the pilots to direct the evacuation of the passengers.
“Everything happened within five minutes. Early reports from internal investigation indicated sabotage. But the authorities, locally and internationally, are still investigating the incident.”
The governor added that there was no injury or any outward explosion on the plane.
