The Federal Government has confirmed a temporary delay to the fourth evacuation flight for Nigerians stranded in South Africa after a technical fault was discovered on the aircraft scheduled for the mission.
The Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Wednesday that the evacuation was suspended after cracks were detected on the cockpit windscreen of the Air Peace aircraft in Johannesburg, forcing aviation officials to ground the plane for safety reasons.
In a statement issued by the ministry’s spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, the government said the aircraft was withdrawn from service as a precaution to protect passengers and crew.
According to the ministry, Air Peace has completed arrangements to dispatch a replacement aircraft to South Africa later on Wednesday to airlift the affected Nigerians back home.
Ebienfa apologised to the stranded passengers for the disruption, emphasising that the decision to postpone the flight was made solely in the interest of passenger safety.
“We have a situation in Johannesburg regarding the fourth evacuation flight. The aircraft could not depart because cracks were discovered on the cockpit windscreen. Air Peace will deploy another aircraft later today to bring the returnees. We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience,” the statement said.
The delay affects the fourth batch of Nigerians scheduled for evacuation under the Federal Government’s ongoing repatriation programme from South Africa.
Authorities assured passengers that efforts are underway to complete the operation as quickly as possible while ensuring full compliance with aviation safety standards.
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