An Abuja bound Aero Contractors flight, which made an air return to Lagos on Tuesday night, had a problem with its “internal air borne auxiliary power unit (APU)’’, a spokesman said on Wednesday.
Mr Simon Tumba, Chief Executive Officer of SY&T Communications, media consultant to the airline, gave the explanation in response to enquiries by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
He dispelled claims that the aircraft with registration mark AJ 133, had an engine failure.
“It was the internal air borne auxiliary power unit of the aircraft that was faulty and it could not supply the initial light the aircraft needed inside the cabin and power the air conditioners prior to take off.
“The APU is usually used to power any aircraft before they commence flight operations after passengers have boarded them,'' he told NAN by telephone.
Tumba said that the aircraft had to return to Lagos where the airline had its warehouse and spare parts to repair the faulty APU.
He said that the APU had been fixed and the aircraft was fit to fly again.
It would be recalled that the aircraft had to make an emergency landing at the international wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, on Tuesday night.
NAN learnt that the aircraft's pilot had allegedly announced that one of the aircraft's two engines had a problem 12 minutes after it had taken off from the local terminal of the MMA, Lagos.
“The flight was scheduled to take off from Lagos at 7p.m. but it was delayed till about 8 p.m. before it finally took off, '' a source told NAN.?
The source said that the aircraft had to make an emergency landing at the international wing, since the runway at the local wing was without lighting that could have aided it.
The source, who pleaded anonymity, said that the airline had to convey the passengers on board back to the domestic terminal where they boarded another aircraft at about 11 p.m.