Nigerian airline, Air Peace, on Thursday, faulted media reports that its aircraft scheduled to operate the Lagos-Anambra flight on Wednesday (yesterday) experienced a faulty engine when it was about to take off.
There had been reports that the flight’s engine allegedly stopped working three times at the take-off point on Wednesday. It was also reported that the aircraft was delayed for two hours after the alleged engine fiasco.
But reacting to The PUNCH’s inquiries on Thursday, the airline management faulted the reports, adding that the claims were “sensationalized”.
In a statement made available to our correspendent, the airline’s Corporate Communication Supervisor, Stanley Olisa, clarified that the aircraft only experienced a “slight technical issue”.
According to him, our aircraft engine did not stop working at any point; neither did any ‘passenger escape death’, as alleged by the media reports.
The statement read, “We have noticed some online publications purporting that the engine of our aircraft scheduled to operate Lagos-Anambra flight on October 12, 2022, ‘stopped three times’, with a damaging, sensationalised headline.
“To set the records straight, our aircraft engine did not stop working at any point; neither did any ‘passenger escape death’, as alleged by the media reports. The Auxiliary Power Unit, APU, attached to the aircraft had a slight technical issue and this was not at the point of take-off. So, we had to deploy another aircraft for the flight.
“The APU supplies power to an aircraft while on ground. It is one of the Ground Services Equipment, GSE.
“It is, therefore, shocking to read some media reports saying ‘Air Peace passengers escape death’. We expect journalists to always fact-check and observe the principle of Balance before publishing.”
