A United Airlines flight from Lagos, Nigeria, to Washington Dulles International Airport in Virginia was forced to make an emergency landing on Friday after a sudden in-flight movement injured six people. The incident left four passengers and two crewmembers hurt, United Airlines confirmed.
Videos captured by passengers revealed a scene of chaos on board, with trays, food, and personal items scattered across the cabin floor. Flight 613, carrying 245 passengers, eight flight attendants, and three pilots, returned to Lagos after the abrupt movement. The injured individuals were transported to a nearby hospital and have since been discharged, according to United Airlines spokesperson Leslie Scott.
The cause of the unexpected in-flight jolt remains unclear. United Airlines has ruled out severe turbulence and stated that the company is working closely with aviation authorities in both the United States and Nigeria to determine what happened.
Flight data from FlightRadar24 showed that the aircraft descended sharply from cruising altitude roughly 93 minutes after takeoff. Interestingly, the same plane on a previous Lagos-to-Washington flight was diverted earlier in the week, with similar data showing a rapid descent of 1,000 feet approximately 89 minutes into that journey. Whether these two incidents are connected remains under investigation.
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Nigeria’s Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has confirmed the occurrence. Michael Achimugu, Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection for the NCAA, stated via state-run Radio Nigeria that no fatalities were recorded and that passengers had been accommodated in hotels.
The aircraft involved in the incident was a Boeing 787. This model has faced scrutiny in the past, including a mid-air dive on a Latam Airlines flight last March. Investigators in that case found a malfunction in a pilot’s seat mechanism, which led to a sudden nose dive. In response to that earlier event, Boeing issued an advisory urging airlines operating the 787 to inspect cockpit seat switches.
United Airlines has assured passengers that it is actively working to rebook them on other flights while investigations into Friday’s incident continue.
