Dana plane tyres catch fire after aborted take-off

At least fifty passengers aboard a Dana Air plane disembarked safely after the aircraft’s tyres caught fire shortly after an aborted take-off at the Port Harcourt airport in Rivers State.

The pilot of the plane reportedly noticed an anomaly in the aircraft, a situation that forced him to abort the take-off.

The serious incident happened on Monday

A statement on the airline’s official Twitter handle said the incident was averted without any loss of life or injury to the passengers.

According to the statement, the aircraft with registration number 5N JOY was set to take off from the Port Harcourt airport to Lagos when the Pilot-in-Command noticed an anomaly.

This, the carrier said, made the pilot to contact the Air Traffic Control before embarking on a ramp return.

The statement added that the impact on the brakes affected the aircraft tyres, causing them to spark off while the aircraft was taxiing to re-park.

The statement read in part, ‘’Our aircraft with registration number 5N JOY operating flight 9J 344 from Port Harcourt to Lagos on the 2nd of May 2022 was set to take off when the pilot in command noticed an anomaly which he queried with the Air Traffic Control before embarking on a ramp return in line with our strict safety operating procedures.

“However, the impact on the brakes as a result of the aborted take-off affected the aircraft tyres which sparked off while the aircraft was taxiing to re-park.”

“All 50 passengers on board the aircraft disembarked safely and our maintenance team immediately grounded the aircraft pending the conclusion of their investigations.”

The airline apologised to all the passengers on the flight for the inconveniences caused due to the eventual cancellation of the flight and also restated its commitment towards ensuring the safety of its passengers.