The Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau has indicted an Air Peace captain and first officer for testing positive for alcohol and hard drugs after a runway incursion involving their aircraft at Port Harcourt International Airport.
The incident, which occurred on July 13, 2025, involved a Boeing 737 aircraft operating a scheduled domestic flight from Lagos to Port Harcourt with 103 passengers on board.
Although the plane veered off the runway after an unstabilised approach, all passengers and crew disembarked safely without injuries.
According to the NSIB preliminary report released on Friday and signed by the Director of Public Affairs and Family Assistance, Mrs Bimbo Olawumi Oladeji, toxicological screening conducted at the Rivers State Hospital confirmed the presence of ethyl glucuronide, an alcohol biomarker, in the captain and first officer.
A cabin crew member also tested positive for tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active component of cannabis.
Investigators found that the aircraft landed long on Runway 21, touching down 2,264 metres from the threshold, well beyond the designated touchdown zone, before coming to a stop 209 metres into the clearway.
The bureau noted that the toxicology findings are being reviewed under human performance and safety management frameworks, given their critical role in aviation safety.
Following the discovery, the NSIB issued immediate safety recommendations to Air Peace, urging the airline to strengthen crew resource management training, improve go-around decision protocols, and enforce stricter crew fitness-for-duty monitoring before flight dispatch.
The bureau stressed that the investigation is ongoing, with further findings to be published in its final report.
