Air France plane hits cows on Nigerian airport runway
07.07.05
An investigation has been launched after a plane ran into a herd of cows at Nigeria's Port Harcourt airport yesterday. The Air France plane, with 196 people on board, ploughed into the cows as it touched down at Port Harcourt early yesterday morning.
Port Harcourt is the centre of Nigeria's huge oil industry. No-one on board the plane was hurt, but the collision left seven cows dead and the runway was soaked in blood. The return flight to Paris was cancelled and the airport was closed for several hours.
Passengers waiting to fly to Port Harcourt from the commercial capital, Lagos, on Wednesday said they were told that airport crew were chasing five cows around the airport. Aviation Minister Mallam Isa Yuguda has summoned airport officials to explain the security breach.
A spokeswoman for Air France said the Airbus A330 was checked by technicians, but was not damaged during the incident.
