Arik flight makes air return over ‘false alarm’

A false alarm yesterday triggered an air return by an Arik Air flight taking off from the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja. 

The Boeing 737-700 aircraft, operating flight W3 720 from Lagos to Abuja, experienced the air return following the detection of an indication light suggesting a potential fire in the aft cargo area. 

It was learnt that the incident occurred approximately 10 minutes after takeoff, prompting the captain of the flight to initiate an air return. 

The airline, while confirming the incident stated that the air return was in adherence to standard operating procedures while the captain also requested priority landing clearance from the Control Tower. 

“Upon landing safely in Lagos, passengers were disembarked and the aircraft underwent thorough inspections to ensure its airworthiness for future flight operations. 

“Subsequent investigation by our maintenance team determined that the indication light was triggered by a false alarm,” the airline said.