Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) on Sunday grounded Rano Air’s aircraft with registration mark 5N-BZY, billed to operate a round trip from Sokoto to Kano and Abuja, due to engine failure.

The incident occurred at 3:34 pm, Nigerian time.

In reaction, NCAA issued a directive that the aircraft should be grounded as a precautionary safety measure until it was certified airworthy.

The agency said the directive was part of its strict enforcement of aviation safety protocol compliance across all carriers operating in the Nigerian airspace.

Inside sources indicated that the first engine of the aircraft (engine 1) emitted smoke, which wafted into the cabin and cockpit, as it experienced a malfunction on approach to land.

In response to the engine malfunction, the flight crew immediately donned oxygen masks and activated all appropriate emergency procedures to prepare for safe landing.

Fortunately, the smoke dissipated before landing, and the aircraft landed safely without further incident by the flight’s captain.

However, NCAA’s Directorate of Airworthiness instructed that aircraft 5N-BZY must remain grounded pending full safety investigations.

The incident caused disruptions in passenger movement, particularly affecting travellers scheduled to depart from Sokoto to Kano and, finally, to Abuja.

Following the incident, NCAA reiterated that it will not compromise on aviation safety protocol compliance, even when disruptions inconvenienced flight operations.

The authority stated that Nigerian aviation safety record remained solid, despite the challenges of operating in a developing environment, stating that countries with more advanced aviation infrastructure still report more severe incidents than Nigeria.

NCAA said that was because in Nigeria, flights were cancelled at the slightest indication of a safety-related concern, and the agency’s current actions aligned with global best practices and international regulatory benchmarks in civil aviation oversight.

NCAA promised to release further updates on the incident once investigation into aircraft 5N-BZY were concluded.

Passengers affected by the cancellations of the round-trip flights to be operated by the aircraft were expected to be accommodated in line with Rano Air’s obligations under consumer protection laws.