A Triton Aviation CL60 (registration T7-SEI) declared “Mayday” about three nautical miles after take-off from Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on Thursday, then landed safely 14 minutes later — with its door missing from the fuselage.
The Abuja airport was thrown into panic on Thursday after a CL60 aircraft operated by Triton Aviation lost a door mid-air, forcing the crew to declare an emergency shortly after take-off from the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
The aircraft, registration number T7-SEI and flight identification DWC052, was en route to the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, when the incident occurred at about 4:20 pm.
The 14 minutes that followed
An incident report obtained by our correspondent showed the aircraft took off from Runway 22 at 4:17. It was “about three nautical miles from the airport, climbing through 3,000 feet,” when the crew transmitted a distress call: “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday.”
The crew informed the air traffic control tower that a door had opened in flight, prompting the approach radar controller to direct the aircraft back to Abuja for an emergency landing. Airport fire and emergency personnel and the medical team were immediately alerted and placed on standby, with fire and rescue teams directed to designated positions ahead of the aircraft’s return.
At about 4:29, while in contact with the Abuja control tower, the crew asked whether the controllers could confirm if the door was open. “The duty air traffic controller attempted to observe the aircraft using binoculars, but could not establish the door’s condition because of the aircraft’s position. The crew was subsequently informed that the controller could not confirm the situation visually,” the report said.
The aircraft landed safely on Runway 22 at approximately 4:34 — about 14 minutes after the Mayday call. Following the landing, the duty controller observed that the aircraft’s door was missing from the fuselage, confirming the seriousness of the incident. The jet was subsequently taxied to the international apron extension and parked with the assistance of a marshaller.
The door that fell on a farm
A video obtained by The PUNCH showed the missing door, reportedly recovered by farmers from a farm in the Abuja area. In the video, a man whose identity could not be established said the farmers found it while returning from their farm: “This is what we found as we were returning from the farm. It fell from a plane, but we don’t know much about its identity. As I am sending it to you, sir, just check it.”
Ownership and investigation
Sahara Reporters identified the aircraft as a Bombardier Challenger 604 associated with Shoreline Energy International, and named Nigerian businessman Kola Karim as its owner. The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority and the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau have jurisdiction over such occurrences; neither had issued an official statement as of the time of filing.
Why it matters
A door departing the fuselage at 3,000 feet is a rare and serious structural failure. The crew’s decision to declare “Mayday” within a minute of take-off — rather than a less urgent pan call — reflects the abrupt decompression risk such an event carries. With no confirmed injury and the aircraft landed intact, the focus now shifts to the technical investigation: whether the failure originated in the door plug, latching mechanism, seal or maintenance history, and where the missing panel struck the ground.
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