A bird strike on an Air Peace flight on the Lagos-Owerri route forced the aircraft to return to base on Saturday, disrupting operations and prompting the airline to issue an apology to passengers.
Flight P47150, which departed Lagos for Owerri, was forced to make an air return shortly after takeoff when a bird struck the aircraft mid-flight.
The pilot-in-command returned to Lagos as a safety precaution, and the airline deployed a replacement aircraft for the route.
In a statement issued on Sunday, Air Peace warned of possible delays across its network and appealed for understanding.
“We regret to inform our valued passengers of ongoing flight disruptions on some of our route networks today. We empathise with our passengers over the inconvenience caused and appeal for your patience and understanding as we work diligently to minimise disruptions,” the airline said.
The airline revealed that the Lagos-Owerri bird strike was the 34th such incident it had recorded in 2025 alone. Over the past five years, Air Peace said it had suffered 115 bird strikes across its domestic operations.
An airline official, who spoke to ThisDay, expressed frustration over the growing number of bird strike incidents, saying they are largely beyond the airline’s control.
His words: “This is number 34 bird strike for this year alone. Please make this known to the public because passengers will blame the airline for delays and cancellations, but most of the causes of flight disruptions are beyond the airline.”
Last week, Air Peace recorded similar bird strikes on its Owerri and Port Harcourt routes. The affected aircraft were grounded for repairs and only recently returned to service.
While airlines bear the brunt of flight delays, the responsibility for keeping birds away from airports lies with the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).
The authority had recently announced plans to adopt new measures to improve wildlife control around airports, but the results are yet to be felt across the aviation sector.
