Private jet issues mayday alert as door comes off in mid-air on flight to Lagos

Private jet issues mayday alert as door comes off in mid-air on flight to Lagos A Bombardier Challenger 600 jet issued a 'mayday' call shortly after departing Nigeria's capital, Abuja, after its door flew off on Thursday evening A private jet issued a "mayday" distress call shortly after taking off from Nigeria's capital when its cabin door broke away mid-flight. Flight DWC052, a Bombardier Challenger 600, departed Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja at 4.17pm UTC on Thursday, according to flight-tracking data. The incident happened just minutes into its flight to Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos. An air traffic control report obtained by Nigerian newspaper the Daily Trust said the crew informed controllers that a door had opened during the flight. The aircraft was then directed back to Abuja for an emergency landing. The report stated: "At about 4:29 p.m. UTC, while in contact with the Abuja control tower, the crew asked whether air traffic 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 aircraft landed safely on Runway 22 at approximately 4:34 p.m. UTC, 14 minutes after the Mayday call." The report added that once the aircraft landed, the duty controller noticed that the door was missing. A video circulating online appears to show a door that people claim was found by farmers in a field in Abuja. A male voice can be heard saying in the video: "This is what we found as we were returning from our 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." It has not been confirmed whether the door shown in the video belongs to the aircraft. Triton Aviation, the operator of the jet, and the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, which operates Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, were contacted for comment. The Mirror has also contacted the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau, which is investigating the incident.