President Jonathan Escaped Death, As Technical Problem With His Jet Discovered Minutes Before Take Off

President Goodluck Jonathan, some top government officials escaped an air crash at the Minna Airport, when a presidential jet developed a technical fault, while they were aboard.

N9bn presidential jet, Nigerian Air Force 001 (5N-FGT), took the president, others, to Niger state in the morning of March 8, 2014, Saturday, where the Peoples Democratic Party’s North-Central rally took place.

After the event was over, the President returned to the airport accompanied by some top government officials, PDP state governors who had a scheduled trip to Sokoto later this day.

However, several minutes after Jonathan and the delegation had boarded the aircraft and its door was shut, the presidential jet failed to move.

Everyone had to disembark from the plane. The ground services, engineers started their attempts to fix the problem, while armed security men took strategic positions around the jet.

Soon it became obvious that the fault could not be easily fixed.

The commander of the Presidential Air Fleet, Air Vice Marshal Uko Ebong, has directed that a smaller presidential jet, 5N-FGW, which was used by Vice-President Namadi Sambo in his trip to Niger state, to be brought for President Jonathan.

The president moved from the faulty jet at about 3.30 pm and quickly moved to the smaller aircraft. President Jonathan soon landed in Sokoto safely (pictured above).

He later left the airport in the smaller aircraft at about 3.35 pm, leaving behind some of his co-occupants in the bigger jet.

VP Sambo also had to join David Mark in another smaller presidential jet, 5N-FGV, which had earlier conveyed the Senate President to the state. Senator Barnabas Gemade and a few other dignitaries also joined them.

Those who were with the President in the faulty aircraft before they disembarked included the National Chairman of the PDP, Adamu Muazu, the Chairman of the party’s Board of Trustees, Tony Anenih, the former chairman of the party, Ahmadu Ali, the former Sokoto State Governor, Attahiru Bafarawa, and some presidential aides.