Multiple people were injured on a United Airlines flight heading from Lagos, Nigeria, to Washington DC last week.
In a statement released on Friday, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria said that a Boeing 787-800 belonging to United Airlines was forced to make an emergency return last Friday.
The plane departed from Murtala Muhammed international airport in Lagos at 11.59pm on 23 January and made the emergency return and landed safely at 3.22am on 24 January.
According to United Airlines, the plane made the emergency return due to a “technical issue and an unexpected aircraft movement”, USA Today reports.
On board the flight were 245 passengers, 11 crew members and three pilots. While all passengers and crew were able to disembark safely following the emergency landing, four passengers and two crew members sustained serious injuries, Faan said, adding an additional 27 passengers and five crew members had minor injuries.
Micheal Achimugu, Nigeria’s director of public affairs and consumer protection at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), confirmed the incident to Nigeria’s state-run media outlet Radio Nigeria and reassured the public that there had been no fatalities.
Those with minor injuries received first aid and were discharged immediately, according to Faan. Meanwhile, those with serious injuries were stabilized and transferred to the Duchess hospital in Ikeja, the capital city of Lagos state.
Videos posted on social media showed food trays scattered across the aisle as passengers panicked in their seats.
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In a statement to USA Today, United Airlines said: “We are working with aviation authorities in the US and Nigeria to understand the cause.”
