Portsmouth in plane scare in Nigeria as pilot aborts landing
ABUJA (Nigeria): Portsmouth had a dramatic start to their pre-season tour of Nigeria on Friday, when the pilot of their private plane was forced to abort a landing in Abuja only just above the runway.
The airbus was about to land when it suddenly lurched upwards. The pilot told the passengers he was forced to abort the landing because he had not received permission to land from air traffic controllers.
Pompey defender Linvoy Primus said the passengers had no idea what was happening until seconds before the plane was due to touch down.
“It was a great flight and we were just above the runway, when the pilot suddenly pulled the plane out of the landing and back up into the sky,” he told the club’s website. “We were all shocked. No one knew what was happening. There had been no warning that there was a problem. But credit to the pilot, who told us that he had been unable to establish contact with the tower and had decided not to land.”
The plane had to circle around a mountainous area in a lightning storm for 30 minutes before clearance was given. When the pilot landed successfully at the second attempt, he was applauded by the 40-strong party, which included five England internationals |