Read the statement below...
In view of the
false fire alarm at the Port Harcourt airport on Saturday, March 12, 2016, the
Nigerian Civil Aviation authority and the management of Nigeria’s newest and
fastest rising local airline, Air Peace have officially debunked rumors
surrounding the incident.
Speaking on the false fire alarm incident, Allen Onyema,
Chairman/CEO of Air Peace Ltd, said that despite the false fire alarm that was
raised upon landing at the Port Harcourt airport, the plane’s crew acted
professionally and executed its emergency evacuation procedure excellently and
without incident only to discover that a false fire alarm had been raised.
According to Onyema, “We remain committed as a matter of first priority, to the
safety of our passengers, crew and equipment. To further prove the
airworthiness of our fleet, the same aircraft was cleared to fly to Lagos on
the same day after thorough checks had been conducted by the relevant aviation
agencies and the alarm found to be false. The question here is that, if it was
that of a faulty machine, would that have happened? What our pilot did was precautionary even
though it turned out to be a false fire alarm.”
Speaking anonymously to members of the press, a senior staff
of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Agency (NCAA) at the Port Harcourt Airport
commended the pilot and crew of the aircraft for their quick response and
evacuation of passengers when the false fire alarm was raised. He further added
that upon closer inspection by regulators, airline inspectors and the fire
service, there was no sign of fire neither was anything found to be wrong with
the aircraft. “The same aircraft was declared airworthy and made a trip to
Lagos same day. The crew must be commended for their professionalism and
response in following laid down procedures for such situations.”
Further explaining what transpired, Onyema said, "As
the Captain was taxing to go and park at the apron after landing, the tower
informed him that there was smoke from the under belly of the aircraft thereby
making the pilot to deploy the slides and all six doors for the passengers to
be evacuated.
"The fire fighters who were called by the tower did not
see any smoke or fire, likewise passengers. The engineers, the NCAA and other
agencies witnessed that there was no smoke or fire. It was a false fire alarm
that led to the entire situation, but Air Peace crew responded professionally
in accordance with the books."
While harping on the need for caution on media reports, the
Airline chief commented that it served no one any good to engage in sensational
journalism without cross-checking facts. “We have proved to the world today
that we are very capable of handling very efficiently emergency situations if
they ever occur even though this one turned out to be a false alarm. We remain committed
to our goal of being Nigeria’s Number 1 travel friendly airline with
best-in-class equipment and well trained employees,” Onyema added.
Meanwhile, a brand communications expert, Tobi Ogra, has
asked the FG to speed up the passing of necessary anti-competition and
anti-trust laws. In her comments, the absence of these laws has been utilized
by certain key players in various industries to bully high-flying upstarts
through underhand de-marketing tactics. In her words, the failure of the
government to provide an equitable and fair playing field for investors is bad
for the economy and discourages new businesses.
Established in 2013, Air Peace has gradually cemented its
position as Nigeria’s fastest rising and most travel friendly airline. The
airline currently operates a range of modern aircraft with numerous flights to
7 cities across Nigeria.
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