An Air Peace passenger was escorted off an Abuja-bound flight on Monday following a confrontation with cabin crew in which he allegedly threatened that his anger could “burn down” the aircraft.
The incident occurred aboard Flight P47866 shortly before take-off, according to Michael Achimugu, Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
In a post on X, Achimugu identified the passenger as Celestine Ezeudu, alleging that he repeatedly ignored instructions from cabin crew to stop taking photographs and put away his device as the aircraft prepared for departure.
The disagreement reportedly escalated into an argument, during which Ezeudu allegedly made the threat against the aircraft.
Following the incident, the captain was notified and ordered the plane back to the ramp at 15:57 hours, where Ezeudu was removed from the flight.
His travelling companion also opted to leave the aircraft voluntarily, Achimugu disclosed.
The NCAA official further explained that Ezeudu attributed his outburst to frustration over missing an earlier flight when he was questioned by airline personnel.
“In the crew room, Ezeudu claimed that his anger stemmed from missing an earlier flight, but he did not know that his behaviour would lead to a ramp return,” Achimugu added.
Achimugu did not disclose the location from which the flight was scheduled to depart or indicate whether the passenger would face additional penalties over the incident.
