103 Dead in Nigeria Plane Crash
Dec 12th, 2005 | By Jared Blank103 people, mostly students, were killed when their Sosoliso Airlines DC-9 crashed in Port Harcourt, Nigeria. Seven people survived the accident. I typically poo-poo when people start saying that this airline or that airline is unsafe, but Nigeria has had a truly miserable airline safety record. Seven weeks ago another fatal crash killed 117 people in Lagos. Most airlines there fly old aircraft that are not well maintained (the old is not the problem, the not-well-maintained is the problem) and seem to have no issue landing in miserable weather. On the flip side, driving through the country is far less safe than flying, so it’s important to keep in mind that if you have to get from Lagos to Abuja (or wherever) most of your options suck.