Nigeria

The crew took delivery of the aircraft in Farnborough and was supposed to transfer it in Abuja following fuel stop in Paris-Le Bourget, Oued Isara and Kaduna. Shortly after takeoff from Kaduna Airport runway 05, while in initial climb, one of the engine caught fire. The pilot-in-command lost control of the airplane that stalled and crashed, bursting into flames. Both occupants were killed.

The accident was reported to erstwhile Accident Investigation and Prevention Bureau (AIPB) now Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) on Saturday 22nd of October, 2005. The site of the wreckage was located on the 23rd of October, 2005 and investigation began the same day. On October 22, 2005, at 2040 hrs, Bellview Airlines (BLV) Flight 210, a Boeing B737-200, 5N-BFN, crashed while climbing to cruise altitude shortly after take-off from Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos (LOS). The flight was operating under the provisions of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) Air Navigation Regulations (ANRs) as a scheduled domestic passenger flight from LOS to Abuja International Airport (ABV). The flight departed LOS for ABV at 2035 hrs, with 2 pilots, 1 licensed engineer, 3 flight attendants, and 111 passengers on board. The airplane entered a descent and impacted open terrain at Lisa Village, Ogun State. All 117 persons were killed and the airplane was destroyed by impact forces and fire. Instrument meteorological conditions prevailed. The airplane was operated on an Instrument Flight Rule (IFR) plan. The accident occurred on the final leg of a one-day round trip from Abuja to Abidjan with intermediate stops at Lagos and Accra for both the outbound and inbound segments. The trip through the second stop at Accra (the fourth leg) was reported without incident. On the fifth leg, during the taxi for takeoff at Accra, the pilot and the engineer discussed the low pressure reading of 650 psi in the brake accumulator system according to the pilot that flew the aircraft from Accra to Lagos. Normal accumulator brake pressure is 1000 psi. The captain continued the flight to the destination, LOS, without incident, where the discrepancy was logged. The engineer briefed the maintenance crew about the low pressure reading. The crew consisted of two Licensed Aircraft Engineers (LAEs) and the outbound engineer for Flight 210. LAEs and engineer on riding coverage worked together to troubleshoot the brake system, which included verifying the pressure reading with the pressure gauge from another Boeing 737 (5N-BFM) in the fleet. It was determined that the source of the low pressure was due to a faulty brake accumulator. On checking the Minimum Equipment List (MEL), the maintenance engineers decided that the aircraft could be released for operation with the fault. Before Flight 210 departed, the captain discussed en-route weather with another pilot who had just completed a flight from Port Harcourt to Lagos. The other pilot informed the accident captain of a squall line in the vicinity of Benin. The accident captain indicated that he experienced the same weather condition on his previous flight from Abuja to Lagos. The chronology of the flight was determined from the transcript of the recorded radio communications between Air Traffic Control and Flight 210 and post accident interviews of air traffic personnel. According to the transcript, the pilot of Flight 210 contacted the tower at 1917:02 UTC and requested for startup and clearance was given. The controller gave him the temperature and QNH, which were 27 degrees Centigrade and 1010 millibars respectively. At 1924:08 UTC, the Pilot requested and got approval for taxi to Runway 18L. At 1927 UTC, the tower requested for Persons on Board (POB), endurance and registration. In response, the pilot indicated the number of persons on board as 114 minus 6 crew, fuel endurance as 3 hours and 50 minutes and registration 5N-BFN. The tower acknowledged the information and issued the route clearance via Airway UR778, Flight Level 250, with a right turn-out on course. The pilot read back the clearance and the controller acknowledged and instructed the pilot to report when ready for takeoff. At 1927:55 UTC, the pilot requested “can we have a left turn out please?” and soon afterwards his request was granted by the controller. At 1928:08 UTC, the tower cleared BLV 210 as follows: "BLV 210 RUNWAY HEADING 3500FT LEFT TURN ON COURSE" At 1928;12 UTC, BLV 210 replied "3500FT LEFT TURN ON COURSE 210". 1928:47 UTC, the pilot reported ready for takeoff, and after given the wind condition as 270 degrees at 7 knots the controller cleared Flight 210 for departure at 1928:50 UTC. The pilot acknowledged the clearance, and at 1929:14 UTC requested “And correction, Bellview 210, please we will take a right turn out. We just had a sweep around the weather and right turn out will be okay for us.” The controller responded “right turn after departure, right turn on course” and the pilot acknowledged. According to the transcript, at 1931:52 UTC, the controller reported Flight 210 as airborne and instructed the pilot to contact LOS Approach Control. During the post-crash interview, the controller indicated he saw the airplane turn right, but was unable to determine its attitude due to darkness. He indicated the airplane sounded and appeared normal. At 1932:22 UTC, the pilot made initial contact with Approach Control and reported “Approach, Bellview 210 is with you on a right turn coming out of 1600 (feet)”. The Approach Control replied “report again passing one three zero.” The pilot acknowledged at 1932:35 UTC, and that was the last known transmission from the flight. According to the transcript, the controller attempted to regain contact with the flight at 19:43:46 UTC. Repeated attempts were unsuccessful. Emergency alert was then sent out to relevant agencies including the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for search and rescue operations to commence. The airplane struck the ground on flat terrain in a relatively open and wooded area, 14NM north of the airport (6˚ 48’ 43” N and 3˚ 18’ 19” E).

The crew departed Brussels on a cargo flight to Johannesburg with an intermediate stop in Lagos. On approach by night, the crew was cleared to land on runway 19R that was closed to traffic due to resurfacing process. After touchdown, the aircraft collided with several equipments then veered off runway to the left and came to rest. All nine occupants escaped uninjured while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. ATC cleared the crew to land on runway 19R while the runway 19L was the one in service at the time of the accident.

On the day of the accident, the aircraft departed Abuja with the call Sign SXC401 en route Port Harcourt conveying 2 passengers on revenue basis. Before the commencement of the flight, the Chief Engineer was reported to have replaced the "Carbon brush" of the starboard starter generator. The source of this pair of carbon brushes is questionable. This flight was uneventful as the passengers disembarked and the aircraft picked up fuel for Port Harcourt. The aircraft departed Port Harcourt at 1750 hrs UTC with five souls on board (all crewmembers), estimating Calabar at 1827 hrs UTC. At 1800 hrs UTC, the aircraft was in contact with Calabar Tower at 5,000 feet, reporting 5 Souls-On-Board and an endurance of 3 hrs 30 minutes. The crew also requested for the hourly weather report and the control tower passed the 1700 hours weather report as "surface wind 140°/ 09 knots, visibility 10km, slight thunderstorm, cloud base scattered 300 metres, few CB N-SE 690 m broken at 9,000 m, QNH 1008 and temperature 27°C". The aircraft was also instructed to maintain the 5,000 feet level and to expect no delay for the VOR approach to runway 03. At 1809 hrs UTC, the aircraft was at 35 nautical miles to the station when the pilot requested for descent clearance and the controller gave him a clearance to 2,500 feet and to position for a straight-in approach to runway 03 and the crew acknowledged. At 1824 hrs UTC, the pilot reported having electrical problem and therefore declared emergency. Thereafter, the pilot requested for increase in the intensity of the approach lights, the controller informed him that the approach lights were, already, at their maximum intensity. The controller procedurally then requested for the aircraft's altitude but the response of the pilot was "we are coming to Calabar" and at 1830 hrs the aircraft reported 16 nautical miles to Calabar. The control tower at 1833 hrs UTC, wanted to establish the position of the aircraft by requesting repeatedly "Your position? Your position?" to which the response was "standby, standby". The verbal query continued until 1842 hrs and when there was no response from the aircraft, the controller alerted the airport fire services to be on the standby for further instructions. When the controller could no longer establish contact with the aircraft, he then contacted the relevant agencies for search and rescue operations. Meanwhile, the aircraft on descent impacted trees and crashed in a marshy area located 22 km from the airport. The aircraft was destroyed and all five occupants were killed.

The aircraft was completing a regular schedule flight from Jos to Lagos with an intermediate stop in Kano. Weather conditions were good but the OAT at the time of the accident was +42° C. Due to construction works (retreatment of the asphalt surface), the longest runway 24/06 was closed to traffic so the crew was departing from runway 23 at Kano-Mallam Aminu Kano Airport which is 2,600 metres long. Due to high temperature and reduced performances, the aircraft used the entire runway length, overran and rolled on a grassy area for few dozen metres before lifting off. During initial climb, the aircraft encountered difficulties to gain sufficient height and to follow a positive rate of climb when it collided with obstacles and crashed in the district of Gwammaja located about 2 km past the end of runway 23. The aircraft was totally destroyed by impact forces and a post crash fire as well a several buildings, among them a school and a mosque. Among the 77 people on board the aircraft, six survived (five passengers and one stewardess). All 71 other occupants were killed as well as 78 people on the ground. More than 70 other people on the ground were injured, some seriously. It was later reported that the aircraft was out of service for 52 days due to engine problems. Nevertheless, both engines were changed few days prior to the accident and accumulated 10 hours of flight since.

The aircraft departed Luxembourg-Findel Airport on a cargo flight to Johannesburg with an intermediate stop in Port Harcourt, carrying nine passengers, four crew members and a load consisting of almost 60 tons of electronics. On a night approach to Port Harcourt Airport, the copilot who was the pilot-in-command failed to comply with the company published procedures and carried a non-standard autopilot approach, tracking a localizer radial inbound and descending using the vertical speed mode as reference. On short final, the crew failed to realize his altitude was insufficient when the aircraft struck the ground 700 metres short of runway. The undercarriage was torn off and the aircraft slid for few dozen metres before coming to rest with its front section that broke away, bursting into flames. A crew member was killed, seven occupants were injured and five escaped uninjured. The aircraft was partially destroyed by fire.

Few minutes after takeoff from Lagos-Murtala Muhammed Airport, en route to Calabar, the pilot informed ATC about engine problems and was cleared to return. He apparently attempted an emergency landing when the aircraft struck a tree and crashed in Igbogbo, in the southern suburb of Ikorodu, about 25 km east of Lagos Airport. A passenger was seriously injured while the pilot and the second passenger were killed.

On final approach to Lagos-Murtala Muhammed Airport, both engines failed simultaneously due to fuel exhaustion. The aircraft lost height, collided with approach lights and crashed short of runway threshold. All four occupants escaped with minor injuries while the aircraft was damaged beyond repair. The exact date of the mishap remains unknown, somewhere in May 2001.

The twin engine aircraft departed Jos on a charter flight to Maiduguri, carrying 14 passengers and four crew members for the Nigerian daily newspaper 'This Day'. After takeoff from Jos Airport, the crew was informed about good weather conditions at destination with a 9 km visibility that dropped few minutes later to 5 km. While approaching Maiduguri, the crew encountered poor weather conditions and ATC advised the crew to divert to another airport. The crew followed a holding pattern for few minutes for weather improvement but informed ATC that he was unable to divert due to insufficient fuel reserve. Eventually, the captain attempted an emergency landing 12 km from the airport. The aircraft crash landed in an open field and came to rest. All 18 occupants escaped with minor injuries and the aircraft was damaged beyond repair.

While approaching Warri Airport runway 06 following an uneventful flight from Benin City, the twin engine aircraft entered an uncontrolled descent and crashed near a refinery located near Jeddo, about 11 km west of the airport. All six occupants were killed, among them five Nigerian Army Officers.