The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) released a preliminary report detailing findings from a runway excursion incident involving an Air Peace Boeing 737-524 aircraft (registration 5N-BQQ) at Port Harcourt International Airport on July 13. The aircraft, operating a scheduled flight from Lagos with 103 persons on board, landed long on Runway 21 after an unstabilised final approach, touching down 2,264 metres from the threshold and coming to a stop 209 metres into the clearway. Fortunately, all passengers and crew disembarked safely, with no injuries recorded.

A significant revelation from the NSIB's report, signed by its director of public affairs and family assistance, Bimbo Oladeji, on Friday, was that initial toxicological tests conducted on the flight crew returned positive for certain substances. Specifically, the captain and first officer showed indicators of alcohol consumption, a finding later confirmed by toxicological screening at the Rivers State Hospital Management Department of Medical Laboratory. Additionally, a cabin crew member tested positive for THC, the psychoactive component in cannabis.

In response to these findings, the NSIB issued immediate safety recommendations to Air Peace Limited. These recommendations included strengthening crew resource management (CRM) training, particularly concerning handling unstabilised approaches and making go-around decisions. The bureau also advised reinforcing internal procedures for crew fitness-for-duty monitoring before flight dispatch. The NSIB noted that these results were being reviewed under human performance and safety management, with a full preliminary report available online and a final report pending with further conclusions and recommendations.

However, Air Peace, through a statement signed by its management on X (formerly Twitter) hours after the NSIB's report, vehemently denied receiving any official communication from the NSIB regarding these preliminary findings. The airline highlighted that the alcohol testing took place less than an hour after the incident, over a month prior to the NSIB's public announcement.

Air Peace stated that the captain of the affected flight was immediately grounded and dismissed, not due to substance use, but for failing to adhere to Crew Resource Management (CRM) principles and disregarding the co-pilot’s advice to execute a go-around. Conversely, the co-pilot, who initiated the call for a go-around, has since been cleared by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and reinstated to active flight duties, which Air Peace cited as evidence against any involvement in drug or alcohol use by the co-pilot.

The airline reaffirmed its strict zero-tolerance policy against alcohol and drug use, stating its internal policy is stricter than the regulatory 8-hour pre-flight abstention. Air Peace pledged to intensify internal checks and increase the frequency of alcohol and drug testing for its crew members. Furthermore, the airline committed to strengthening internal monitoring and fitness-for-duty checks, reinforcing its dedication to Enhanced Crew Resource Management training and maintaining its strong safety record by strictly implementing global best practices.