President Boakai’s Jet midway on the tarmac after the incidence
Below:President Boakai speaking to journalists after rescued safely
Abubakar Hashim
Managing Director of Liberia Airport Authority, LAA, Jero Mends-Cole, confirmed a private jet carrying President Boakai and entourage from Lagos, experienced a near-crash landing incident, on Thursday 29, May, 202 That was one of the jet’s tires burst during landing, causing the aircraft to abruptly stop, mid-running on the tarmac.
Mends-Cole dismissed false reports in social media that it was caused by poor runway conditions.
President Boakai and entourage were safely evacuated without any injuries, in accordance with airport emergency safety response procedures.
It was caused by a mechanical failure in one of the tires and not structural defects of the runway.
This brought a temporal halt of all commercial flights in the early hours of Thursday. Normal flights continued later same day.
President Boakai was returning from the 50th golden anniversary of ECOWAS in Lagos.
Liberia is a founding member of ECOWAS in signing and ratifying the Lagos treaty in 1975