Bellview Airlines Flight 210

Infobox Airliner accident|name=Bellview Airlines Flight 210
Date=October 22 2005
Type=Under investigation (Possible lightning strike)
Site=Lagos, Nigeria
Fatalities=117
Injuries=0
Aircraft Type=Boeing 737-200
Operator=Bellview Airlines
Tail Number=5N-BFN
Passengers=111
Crew=6
Survivors = 0

On October 22 2005, Bellview Airlines Flight 210, a Boeing 737-200 aircraft, crashed shortly after taking off from Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos en route to the Nigerian capital Abuja, killing all 117 people on board.

Casualties

Early reports from Oyo State government officials claimed that at least half of those on board survived the crash, but later reports indicated no survivors, blaming confusion at the crash scene for the initial mistake. The aircraft crashed in a village called Lisa in the Ifo local government area of Ogun State, southwest Nigeria. The flight had 111 passengers and 6 crew members on board.

Causes

Bellview suspended all flights from Lagos pending an investigation. The plane sent out a distress signal shortly after leaving the airport. Radio communication with the plane was then lost due to an intense electrical storm. Boeing officials have offered to assist in the investigation if invited to by the Nigerian government. Boeing officials have conjectured that a combination of poor maintenance of the plane by the ground crew together with a lightning strike to the right wing of the plane caused the right engine to ignite, causing the aircraft to bank heavily to the left and eventually lose control. However, the investigation is on-going.

External links

*" [http://www.guardian.co.uk/airlines/story/0,1371,1599148,00.html "100 feared dead in Nigeria after passenger jet crashes"] ," "The Guardian" (UK), October 24, 2005
* [http://aviation-safety.net/database/record.php?id=20051022-0 ASN accident record]
*" [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/4372458.stm Nigeria - where the truth is hard to find] ," "BBC"
* [http://nm.onlinenigeria.com/templates/?a=5768&z=10 Faces in Bellview Flight 210 ...plus the heart-breaking story of the pilot]