Abuja, Nigeria
A Boeing 737 crashed in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, this week after taking off in a thunderstorm. Ninety-six people were killed, including the Sultan of Sokoto, Muhammadu Maccido, the spiritual leader of Nigerias 70 million Muslims. There were nine survivors. It was the third deadly plane crash in just over a year. Nigerian aviation officials blamed the crash on pilot error and suspended the domestic airline, ADC. But Nigerian Vice President Atiku Abubakar said the entire aviation sector needs an overhaul. There is a need for us to go further than what we have already done, he said. Even if it comes to a daily check on aircraft departing from all our major airports on a daily basis, we need to do that to ensure better safety.
