Panic in Abuja as private jet door detaches mid-air moments after takeoff

Panic was averted at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Thursday afternoon, October 15, 2026, when a Bombardier Challenger 600 aircraft suffered a structural failure shortly after departure, losing its main cabin door in mid-air.

The aircraft, a Challenger 600 operated by Triton Aviation with registration number T7-SEI, was operating flight DWC052 bound for Lagos (Murtala Muhammed International Airport – DNMM).

According to official incident reports by Air Traffic Control, the aircraft departed Abuja’s Runway 22 at 16:17 UTC.

Just three minutes into the flight, at 16:20 UTC, while passing through 3,000 feet at three nautical miles outbound, the flight crew issued a distress call (“MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY”) to Abuja Approach Radar, reporting an unsealed, open door in flight.

Air Traffic Controllers immediately issued radar vectors to turn the aircraft back toward Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport for an emergency landing on Runway 22.

By 16:22 UTC, the airport’s Fire Watch Room and medical emergency teams were immediately alerted and requested to position emergency vehicles at Taxiways A4 and A5 in anticipation of a high-risk touchdown.

As the aircraft established contact with the Abuja Control Tower at 16:29 UTC, the flight crew asked air traffic controllers if they could visually inspect the fuselage to determine the condition of the door.

The Duty Air Traffic Controller (DATCO) attempted to observe the approaching jet using binoculars, but due to the aircraft’s angle and approach path, was unable to confirm the state of the door at that moment.

At 16:34 UTC—seventeen minutes after initial departure—flight DWC052 touched down safely on Runway 22.

It was upon landing that air traffic controllers made a visual confirmation: as the aircraft rolled down the runway, its fuselage became clearly visible, revealing that the cabin door had completely detached and was missing entirely from the airframe.

Despite the severe loss of the airframe door at 3,000 feet, the pilots maintained control of the private jet, taxiing the aircraft safely to the International Apron extension under its own power. By 16:40 UTC, the marshals guided the aircraft into its parking bay, with all crew and passengers intact.

Aviation safety regulators and accident investigation bodies are expected to launch a formal probe into the structural failure, door locking mechanisms, and pre-flight inspection procedures of Triton Aviation to determine how the door detached mid-flight.