Panic As Aircraft Loses Door Mid-Air, Makes Emergency Landing in Abuja

A private aircraft operated by Triton Aviation made an emergency landing in Abuja after losing a door shortly after take-off from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport.

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The incident raised safety concerns after the aircraft’s missing door was reportedly discovered by farmers on a farmland in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The aircraft, a CL60 jet with registration number T7-SEI and flight identification DWC052, was scheduled to fly from Abuja to the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on Thursday, October 15, 2026.

According to an air traffic control incident report, the jet departed Runway 22 at approximately 4:17 p.m. UTC. 

However, the flight was disrupted minutes later when the crew reported a problem involving one of its doors.

At about three nautical miles from the airport, while climbing through 3,000 feet, the pilots issued a distress call, transmitting “Mayday” three times to alert air traffic controllers to the emergency.

Consequently, the approach radar controller directed the aircraft to return to Abuja for an emergency landing. 

Airport fire and rescue personnel, alongside medical teams, were immediately placed on standby in preparation for its arrival.

During the flight’s return, the crew asked air traffic control whether the door could be seen from the ground. 

However, the duty controller could not determine its condition despite attempting to observe the aircraft with binoculars.

The jet eventually touched down safely on Runway 22 at approximately 4:34 p.m. UTC, about 14 minutes after the distress call.

Following the landing, the controller confirmed that the aircraft’s door was missing from its fuselage. 

The jet was subsequently moved to the international apron extension, where it was parked with assistance from a ground marshaller.

Meanwhile, footage circulating online showed what appeared to be the missing aircraft door lying on farmland in Abuja.

In the video, a man said farmers discovered the object while returning from their farmland. He explained that they suspected it had fallen from an aircraft but could not immediately establish its identity.

“We found this on our farm while returning home. It appears to have fallen from a plane, but we do not know the aircraft it belongs to,” the man said in the video.

However, the circumstances surrounding the door’s detachment and the exact location where it fell remained unclear.

The number of passengers and crew members aboard the aircraft had not been established as of the time of filing this report. Triton Aviation was also yet to issue a public statement on the incident.

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) confirmed the occurrence but declined to comment further, explaining that the matter fell under the jurisdiction of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB).

The NSIB also acknowledged the incident and said it had deployed investigators to examine the circumstances surrounding the aircraft’s emergency landing.

The bureau indicated that an official statement would be issued after further investigations.

The investigation is expected to establish what caused the aircraft door to detach during flight and determine whether any operational or technical factors contributed to the incident.