Dana pilot’s last conversation with air traffic controller

“Good day!” These were the last two words the courageous pilot told air traffic controllers before the Dana Air flight 0992 crashed into a residential building in Iju-Ishaga, Lagos, killing all the 153 people on board and 10 people on ground on Sunday, June 3, 2012.

The transcription of the last conversation between the air traffic controller and the crew revealed that the pilots did everything to land the aircraft safely on Runway 18 Right of the Murtala Muhammed Airport. The transcription revealed that the aircraft had indeed lost its two engines, shortly after which the pilot declared an emergency.

This revelation is, however, contrary to the view of Dana Air’s Director of Flight Operations, Captain Oscar Wason, who had said it would be premature to conclude that aircraft lost its two engines. Wason claimed that there was nothing to indicate that the pilot told the air traffic controller that the two engines of the aircraft had been lost.

The transcription revealed that the pilot told the controller he had “dual engine failure.” Apart from having dual engine failure, the pilot also told the air traffic controller that he had “negative response from the throttle.” Overall, the transcription revealed that the airplane was in a very devastating condition. This explains why it was said to have descended very fast shortly after the pilot declared emergency, saying, “May Day, May Day”

Dana Crash: Black boxes to leave Nigeria for US today

Minister of Aviation, Mrs Stella Oduah, on Wednesday said the black boxes retrieved from the ill-fated Dana Air flight that killed over 153 persons in Lagos on Sunday would on Thursday (today) be sent to the United States. Oduah said sending the black boxes to the US was to ensure that a thorough investigation was carried out to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the crash as we do not have laboratories in Nigeria for such analysis.

Oduah said President Goodluck Jonathan had approved the setting up of a nine-man technical and administrative panel that will audit all airlines operating in the country. The move, she explained, was to avoid a recurrence of such incident in the nation’s airspace. She said the committee, which has a time frame of six months to complete its assignment, was expected to come up with a comprehensive report on each of the airlines in the country. The minister said the committee’s scope of work would include the immediate review of all domestic airlines; total auditing of all aircraft registered in Nigeria; outlining actions to be taken to improve safety as well as assessment of the financial health of airlines operating within the country, among others.

She gave the names of members of the committee as Group Captain John Obakpolor (rtd) (Chairman); Capt. Austin Omame; Capt. Dele Sasegbon, Dr. O.B Aliu, F.C. Onyeyiri, Capt. Mfon Udom, Capt. Mukhtar Usman, Dr. Tony Anuforom and Capt. A. Mshelia.