Air Peace Removes Passenger After Threat to ‘Burn Down’ Aircraft

Air Peace has removed a passenger from a flight bound for Abuja after he allegedly threatened that his anger could “burn down” the aircraft during a confrontation with cabin crew.

The incident occurred on Monday aboard flight P47866, according to the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Michael Achimugu.

Passenger Allegedly Disobeyed Cabin Crew Instructions

In a post on X, Achimugu identified the passenger as Celestine Ezeudu and said he allegedly refused repeated instructions from cabin crew to stop taking pictures and put away his device as the aircraft prepared for take-off.

He said the disagreement escalated into an altercation, during which Ezeudu allegedly made the threat about his anger being capable of burning down the aircraft.

Following the incident, the captain was alerted and initiated a ramp return at 15:57 hours, allowing airport personnel to remove the passenger from the aircraft.

Travelling Companion Also Disembarks

Achimugu said Ezeudu's travelling companion voluntarily disembarked from the aircraft alongside him.

He added that during questioning, Ezeudu explained that his anger was caused by missing an earlier flight.

According to Achimugu, the passenger did not realise that his conduct would result in the aircraft returning to the ramp and his removal from the flight.

The NCAA official's account highlighted the importance of passengers complying with cabin crew instructions, particularly during critical stages of flight operations.

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