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1973 Kano Nigeria Airways Boeing 707 crash

Coordinates: 12°02′58″N 8°31′15″E / 12.04944°N 8.52083°E / 12.04944; 8.52083
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1973 Kano Nigeria Airways Boeing 707 crash
JY-ADO, the aircraft involved in the accident, at London Heathrow Airport in 1971
Accident
Date22 January 1973 (1973-01-22)
SummaryLanding gear collapse, bad weather
SiteKano International Airport (KAN), Nigeria
12°02′58″N 8°31′15″E / 12.04944°N 8.52083°E / 12.04944; 8.52083
Aircraft
Aircraft typeBoeing 707-3D3C
Aircraft namePetra
OperatorAlia Royal Jordanian Airlines on behalf of Nigeria Airways
RegistrationJY-ADO
Flight originKing Abdulaziz Int'l Airport, Jeddah
DestinationIkeja Int'l Airport, Lagos (now Murtala Muhammed Int'l Airport)
Occupants202
Passengers193
Crew9
Fatalities176
Injuries25
Survivors26

On 22 January 1973, a Nigeria Airways Boeing 707 crashed at Kano International Airport while attempting to land in high winds. The crash killed 176 passengers and crew. There were 26 survivors. The crash remains the deadliest aviation disaster ever in Nigeria.[1]

Aircraft

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The aircraft involved in the accident was a 2-year-old Boeing 707-3D3C, JY-ADO, owned by Alia Royal Jordanian Airlines, operating on behalf of Nigeria Airways. It first flew in 1971 and was powered by four Pratt and Whitney JT3D engines.[1][2] The Captain of the flight was 53-year-old John Waterman, who had been flying for 22 years in the middle east and had accumulated 22,000 hours of flying experience.[3][4][5]

Flight

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A map showing the intended route and crash site
JED
JED
KAN
KAN
LOS
LOS
class=notpageimage|
A map showing the locations of the Jeddah King Abdulaziz International Airport (JED - where the flight originated), Ikeja International Airport (LOS) and Kano International Airport (KAN - the site of the accident)
Overview of Kano International Airport, the site of the accident

The Boeing 707, operated by Alia, had been chartered by Nigeria Airways to fly pilgrims back from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia to Lagos, Nigeria. Due to bad weather conditions at Lagos, the pilots had to divert the flight to Kano.[6] The pilots had to make a second landing attempt due to low visibility from haze and a harmattan.[3][7] Kano International Airport was experiencing high winds at the time. The aircraft landed nose wheel first, and the nose wheel collapsed after hitting a depression in the runway.[8] The right main landing gear leg subsequently collapsed. The aircraft turned 180 degrees, left the runway and burst into flames.

Of the 202 passengers and crew on board, 176 died. At the time it was the deadliest aviation accident,[9] a distinction it only held for about 14 months until Turkish Airlines Flight 981 crashed in France, killing 346 people.[10] The Kano aircraft crash was also the deadliest aviation disaster involving a Boeing 707 at the time until another Alia Royal Jordanian plane crashed in Morocco two years later.[11]

References

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  1. ^ a b Accident description for JY-ADO at the Aviation Safety Network
  2. ^ "Crash of a Boeing 707-3D3C in Kano: 176 killed". www.baaa-acro.com. Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
  3. ^ a b "DISASTERS: End of a Pilgrimage". Time. 5 February 1973. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
  4. ^ Johnson, Thomas A. (23 January 1973). "Pilgrims' Jet Crashes in Nigeria; 180 Are Feared Dead, a Record". The New York Times. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
  5. ^ "Algerian, Airline Official Dispute 707 Crash Toll". UPI. Agana Heights, Guam: Pacific Daily News. 28 January 1973. p. 12. Retrieved 27 January 2025.
  6. ^ "事故詳細 |（事故No,19730122a）" [Accident details | (Accident No. 19730122a)]. eonet.ne.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 27 January 2025.
  7. ^ "Pilgrim plane crash toll 156". Daily Post. Liverpool, Merseyside, England. 24 January 1973. p. 12. Retrieved 27 January 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Accident details". www.planecrashinfo.com. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  9. ^ "World's Worst Plane Crash Kills 190 Pilgrims". UPI. Ludington Daily News. 22 January 1973. Retrieved 29 August 2017 – via Google News Archive.
  10. ^ Accident description for TC-JAV at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 31 July 2013.
  11. ^ Accident description for JY-AEE at the Aviation Safety Network. Retrieved on 15 May 2020.
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