United Nigeria Airlines is calling on the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, to strengthen wildlife hazard control at airports, following a surge in bird strike incidents.
This is coming as the airline has recorded its third bird strike in less than 48 hours, bringing the total to seven in 2026, a development it describes as “an extremely concerning and unacceptable pattern given its impact on safety and operational reliability.”
The latest incident involved an Embraer 190 aircraft on Thursday 4:20PM Flight UN0561 from Benin to Abuja, where a bird strike during take-off damaged the the Nose Landing Gear, NLG, door linkage, forcing the aircraft out of service.
United Nigeria Airlines says three aircraft have now been grounded within two days due to such incidents, stressing the urgent need for improved bird control measures.
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The airline has apologised to passengers for disruptions, maintaining that safety remains its top priority.
Before Thursday’s incident, UNA had on Tuesday, recorded a bird strike on its operating CRJ-900 aircraft during the landing of Flight UN0579 from Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, scheduled for 18:15 hours.
On Wednesday, another bird strike involving one of its Airbus A320-200 aircraft was recorded. The incident occurred on landing at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, from Port Harcourt International Airport (PHC), operating Flight UN0515 scheduled for 15:45 hours and affected the nose section of the aircraft.
The airline has now recorded a total of seven bird strikes in 2026.
Editor: Ebuwa Omo-Osagie
