In his book titled “Working with Buhari: Reflections of a Special Adviser, Media, and Publicity (2015-2023),” Femi Adesina recounts an incident that happened in 2015, where President Muhammadu Buhari’s plane almost crashed. The incident happened in November 2015, en route to the Island of Malta for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. During the flight, the presidential jet encountered severe turbulence, which persisted for an extended period, causing panic among the passengers.
The turbulence intensified as the plane attempted to land in Malta, resulting in a frightening descent. Upon touchdown, the Boeing 737 business jet experienced erratic movements, swaying dangerously and almost tipping over.
In the book, Adesina wrote, “A presidential jet is not immune from bad weather and the accompanying turbulence (many hours of that we experienced). Neither is it spared from what aviators call wind shear (a sudden change in the direction of the wind). We had a frightful experience.
A few seconds from touching the tarmac, the Boeing 737 business jet got buffeted from all sides and began to sway dangerously. On touching down, it pirouetted and gyrated like a drunken sailor; and was almost turning over. Buhari reportedly asked the frightened pilot, “What kind of landing is this?” to which the pilot apologized and explained that they had just experienced wind shear.
The incident was a heart-stopping one, but thankfully, the pilot was able to land the plane safely.