Why our aircraft initiated air return, by Arik Air

Arik Air on Thursday offered clarifications on the circumstances that forced one of its aircraft – Boeing 737-300 , operating W3 720 flight en route Abuja to return to Lagos Airport as the Pilot in Command detected an indication light suggesting potential fire in the aft cargo area.

According to a statement by the airline , the incident occurred approximately 10 minutes after takeoff, prompting the Captain of the flight to adhere to standard operating procedures by initiating an air return and requesting priority landing clearance from the Control Tower.

The statement added that upon landing safely in Lagos, passengers were disembarked and the aircraft underwent thorough inspections to ensure its airworthiness for future flight operations.

Arik Air management said :” Subsequent investigation by our maintenance team determined that the indication light was triggered by a false alarm.

“We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience experienced by our esteemed passengers as a result of this incident.”