By Gboyega Adeoye
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo who BBC earlier claimed to have denied ever being in the Ethiopian Airline Boeing 777-300 that flew into inclement weather preparatory for landing at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos on Wednesday, May 29, 2019, has recounted his experience. onboard.
He was actually among the 293 passengers and crew aboard the aircraft which took off from Addis Ababa en route Lagos.
Obasanjo and the Director-General Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Ambassador Ayo Olukaniwere were returning from Addis Ababa, where they attended a stakeholders’ meeting on Continental Trade and Implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AFCFTA) ended Tuesday, May 28, 2019 at the Ethiopian capital.
They said the pilots of the aircraft simply followed standard operating procedures and precautionary measures in the circumstances leading to final approach of the aircraft, by smoothly pulling up and subsequently lining up with the runway for a second approach.
Obasanjo who had been erroneously reported by his aide not to be on flight, said there was nothing unusual about the flight.
Speaking to an online platform, the former president said he was unperturbed about the development.
Obasanjo told the medium: “I was on the Ethiopian Airline. Rain just came down heavily.
“The pilot thought he could land. And he landed. He touched down. But I think he took a swift decision that he had to take off again.
“So he took off. If he did not, I think he probably would have overrun the runway.
“He then apologised and said he would try to land again. He tried again, and we landed safely. And we all clapped.”
