Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) has denied a media report which claimed that the pilot of an flight operated by Azman airline declared emergency before the flight was allowed to land in Abuja Airport.
NAMA, in a statement signed by its General Manager, Public Affairs, Mr. Khalid Emele said the report was misleading, insisted that there was no time the pilot of the flight declared any emergency before he was given clearance to land at the airport.
“The attention of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) has been drawn to a misleading report by an online medium to the effect that an Azman aircraft from Kano enroute Abuja nearly ran out of fuel while “hovering in the air” (more appropriately, “held in the air”) for over an hour as it was prevented from landing.
“It is noteworthy to state that the Azman’s pilot did not declare any emergency. He was eventually given clearance by air traffic control to land when it was safe to do,” Emele said.
Explaining further on what happened between its control tower and the pilot of the flight, NAMA said Nigerian Air Force is currently practising for an air display to be held on October 1 as part of the nation’s Independence Day Anniversary celebrations, said, “an airspace was designated for the purpose. All civil aircraft are held at a distance of about 20 – 30 nautical miles as military aircraft take off or land.”
The NAMA’s spokesman who agreed that aircraft were delayed from landing for safety reasons, explained that the Azman aircraft was held along with other aircraft in the course of separating traffic to ensure that the aircraft and their passengers land safely.
