Air plane’s engine ‘catches fire mid-air’, passenger shares story of terrible experience

Azman Air plane’s engine reportedly caught fire mid-air on Thursday. A passenger onboard the flight has shared an amazing story about how it all happened after the plane landed safely.

The Azman Air flight was operated by a Boeing B737 with the registration number 5N-NAS. It had departed the Murtala Muhammed Airport domestic terminal (MMA 2), Lagos to Port Harcourt International Airport (PHIA), Port Harcourt, with 114 passengers on-board.

According to sources, the aircraft had already flown for about 35 minutes when the pilot-in-command informed the Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) at Port Harcourt Airport of the breakdown of one of its engines and declared emergency immediately.

Read Korie Tochi’s account of her experience below as shared on Twitter:

“So I almost died today. But apparently God isn’t done with me yet. I know I’ll check out one day but it will be in my 90s when I am old, bent over and lost all my teeth.

I boarded @AzmanAir 9:30 am 3/1/2019, Lagos to Portharcourt. I settled in between a man in his mid 50s

And a girl of about 9yrs, some of her missing teeth reminded me of my daughter Kamsi. I looked out of the window and noticed I was seated close to the engine. I sighed and muttered “my ear go hear am today”. I also noticed there where seemly more kids than adults too.

This is going to be one very noisy flight. We took off smoothly and I closed my eyes and dozed off. I woke up to a tap by a flight attendant. She made to give me a pack of snacks, I declined. Not ready to spoil my coffee and crossaint breakfast.

( this would have been my last breakfast). Was about to close my ears again when I heard it, the engine hit something… Must be a bird, the plane vibrated slightly. I would have waved it aside if the flight attendant didn’t come peeping out the window. I follwed his gaze

and saw the smoke. WHAT!!!! Is this for real??? And that was the beginning of our nightmare. The plane started vibrating. The pilot annouced we would land by 10:55 We neared the runway,oya tyre come out, for where!!!We went back up amidst vibrating plane and cries of scared kids

The pilot tried 3 other times to land the plane and it didn’t work. Na then I know say water don pass garri. Fire was coming out of the engine. I bent down and prayed for my kids. I confessed my sins and asked God for forgiveness. Sent my sis Luu and my closest friend a text.

Didn’t go into details because i didn’t want them to panick. A certain peace envloped me. I was ready to die. I told myself Jeff knows where all my important documents are. He will answer any questions as I am about to die without leaving a will.

I closed my eyes and waited for the inevitable to happen.
Then the plane turned a fifth time and faced the run way. An elderly man got up and implored all of us to start thanking God for the miracle he was about to perform in our lives. We all started screaming and shouting

“thank you Jesus”. I looked out the window and we were nearing the runway again. I shut my eyes and prayed vehemently that this will be it. God please do it for my kids sake. God heard us. The thud of the plane landing was the best feeling ever. I wept.

Tears of gratitude. Everyone was crying. People hugged each other. At that moment we were one. Not Hausa or Igbo or Yoruba. Just a group of people united in our fears and prayers. We survived. We didn’t die. We alighted to the jubilation of the Airport workers. They witnessed it.

They were down there praying for us. Fire service already poured water on the runway to minimise the impact incase we crash landed.
God and the pilot’s expertise saved us.
God, who am i that you are mindful of me?
Please let me go and hug my children one more time.”

Mr. Sam Adurogboye, General Manager, Public Affairs, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), confirmed the incident on the phone according to Lailas.

Adurogboye said Azman airline had alerted the regulatory agency of the incident and that its inspectors would check the aircraft to ascertain its level of damage.

He, however, said the airline had sent in another aircraft to airlift some of its passengers out of Port Harcourt to other cities. (Lailas)