An Ibom Air flight en route from Abuja to Lagos on Thursday morning was forced to return to the nation’s capital after poor weather conditions in Lagos prevented the aircraft from landing safely.
The incident, which resulted in a significant delay, was confirmed by one of the passengers, human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong.
Effiong said the flight took off from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, at approximately 7:10 AM but upon reaching Lagos airspace, the poor weather conditions – likely heavy rainfall, fog, or dust haze common during the transition to the Harmattan season – made landing unsafe.
Effiong reported that the aircraft hovered in Lagos for about 30 minutes before the captain decided to change course. He said aircraft spent approximately two hours in the air before landing back in Abuja.
“We took off from Abuja with Ibom Air at about 7:10 AM. Sadly, the plane couldn’t land due to bad weather. After hovering for about 30 minutes in Lagos, the captain changed course,” he said on X.
Effiong commended the pilot’s professionalism, noting, “The captain handled it well.”
The airline had not issued an official statement on the incident at the time of filing this report.
© 2025 Naijaonpoint, a division of NOP Media Inc. Contact us via [email protected]