A former Governor of Oyo State, Senator Rasheed Ladoja, and several delegates to the ongoing National Conference escaped death by the whiskers on Monday when the Overland Airways plane they boarded had its wing damaged while airborne.
According to an eyewitness account, the Overland Airways plane, with registration number 5NBPE, which took off from the Ibadan, Oyo State airport, had its wing damaged as it was approaching the Niger State airspace and had to make a detour to the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos.
One of the passengers involved narrated how some of the passengers fainted on hearing the bad news.
After about three hours stay in Lagos, the passenger said: “We were moved into another Overland aircraft arriving from Enugu, with registration number 5N-BPF.”
The delegates were returning to Abuja to resume plenary at the ongoing National Conference.
Other delegates on board of the plane were a former President of the Nigerian Union of Journalists, Comrade Lanre Ogundipe; Senators Gbenga Kaka from Ogun State and Hosea Agboola from Oyo State; and Demola Akinlabi, an officer in the Accountant General of the Federation’s Office.
Others were the Oyo State Commissioner for Information, Prince Gbade Lana; and a Federal National Population Commissioner, Abdul-Lateef Gbadamosi.
Ladoja was due to take his turn at the National Conference on Monday.
However, due to the near air mishap, which resulted in his absence, his turn was skipped.
Ladoja, confab delegates, two senators escape death in near plane mishap
By Wole Oye
