Governor Ayo Fayose of Ekiti state has raised an alarm over a misnomer he witnessed at the Akure airport, Ondo state today, Saturday, February 17. The governor said cows took over the runaway of the airport while an Air Peace aircraft from Lagos tried to and. According to him, the presence of the cows in the runaway prevented the aircraft from touching down for about 15 minutes. Governor Fayose hailed the pilot of the aircraft for his professionalism in handling the situation.
His words: “Today, while at the Akure Airport to board Air Peace commercial flight to Lagos, I witnessed cows taking over the Airport runway and preventing Aircraft No. 5NBQQ from landing for more than 15 minutes. Thanks to Captain Inyang for saving the lives of the passengers.”
Today, while at the Akure Airport to board Air Peace commercial flight to Lagos, I witnessed cows taking over the Airport runway and preventing Aircraft No. 5NBQQ from landing for more than 15 minutes. Thanks to Capt Inyang for saving the lives of the passengers.
— Peter Ayodele Fayose (@GovAyoFayose) February 17, 2018
Meanwhile, the management of Air Peace has confirmed the claims by Governor Fayose. Confirming the incident, Air Peace corporate communications manager, Mr. Chris Iwarah said: “We confirm that flight P4 7002 from Lagos had to delay landing into Akure Airport today (Saturday) when the pilot-in-command sighted cows on the runway at about 12.15pm. “On being alerted by control tower, aviation security personnel of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN AVSEC) quickly intervened and cleared the runway. “The flight was eventually cleared to land after about seven minutes. Our guests on board were all calm while the delay lasted. “The aircraft departed for Lagos at about 1.06 with full escort from FAAN security personnel.” Just recently, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) has raised concerns over the obstructions of roads by herdsmen and their cows in some parts of the country. The assistant corps marshal, of the FRSC, Nwaka Agnes, said there was need to enlighten herders on how their cattle should cross the roads, noting that there was no reason for anybody to endanger the lives of other road users. “It (obstruction of traffic by herders and their cows) is worrisome alright but then there is always room for dialogue. There should be more dialogue so that people will really understand that we really need to understand one another’s limit,” she said in an interview with journalists.
