Aircraft Loses Door Mid-Air
….Makes Emergency Landing In Abuja
A private jet operated by Triton Aviation on Thursday made an emergency return to the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, after losing a door shortly after take-off, prompting the crew to issue a Mayday distress call.
The aircraft, a CL60 jet with registration number T7-SEI and flight identification DWC052, was en route to the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, when the incident occurred on October 15, 2026.
According to an air traffic control incident report, the aircraft departed Abuja at about 4:17 p.m. UTC.
Three minutes later, while climbing through 3,000 feet and approximately three nautical miles from the airport, the crew declared an emergency after reporting that a door had opened in flight.
Air traffic controllers immediately directed the aircraft back to Abuja for an emergency landing on Runway 22.
Airport fire and rescue personnel, alongside medical emergency teams, were alerted and placed on standby in anticipation of the aircraft’s return.
The aircraft landed safely at approximately 4:34 p.m. UTC, about 14 minutes after the Mayday distress call. Following the landing, air traffic controllers observed that the door was missing from the aircraft’s fuselage.
The jet was subsequently moved to the international apron extension and parked with the assistance of a marshaller.
In a further development, farmers reportedly found the missing aircraft door on a farm in the Abuja area. A video circulating online showed the recovered object, although the circumstances surrounding its detachment remain unclear.
The number of passengers on board the aircraft had not been confirmed as of the time of filing this report.
The Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Michael Achimugu, reportedly confirmed the incident but said the matter fell under the jurisdiction of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB).
The NSIB also confirmed the serious incident, saying investigators had been deployed to examine the circumstances surrounding the occurrence.
The investigation is expected to establish how the aircraft’s door detached during flight and determine the factors responsible for the incident.
Neither the precise cause of the door detachment nor the full details of the investigation had been established as of Friday.
