Femi Adesina, the former media aide to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, has shared a harrowing experience from his time in the presidential service, detailing a near-tumble incident involving the presidential jet during landing in Malta.
Adesina narrated the incident in his book titled ‘Working with Buhari: Reflections of a Special Adviser, Media and Publicity (2015-2023)’.
In the book, Adesina recounts accompanying President Buhari to Malta in November 2015 for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, describing the flight as a “frightful experience.” He expressed empathy for President Buhari, who, at the time, was nearing 80 and frequently logging hours in the sky.
“A presidential jet is not immune from bad weather and the accompanying turbulence,” Adesina wrote. “Neither is it spared from what aviators call wind shear (a sudden change in the direction of the wind). We had a frightful experience.”
During the November 2015 incident, Adesina details the presidential jet’s precarious landing, stating that the Boeing 737 business jet swayed dangerously upon approaching the tarmac, almost turning over.
“Few seconds from touching the tarmac, the Boeing 737 business jet got buffeted from all sides and began to sway dangerously. On touching down, it pirouetted and gyrated like a drunken sailor; and was almost turning over,” Adesina recounted.
President Buhari expressed concern about the landing, to which the pilot promptly apologized, attributing the awkward landing to a sudden change in the direction of the wind.
“The aircraft stabilized, and the pilot spoke to us from the cockpit,” Adesina added. “We have just experienced what is called a wind sheer, a sudden change in the direction of the wind. Apologies Mr. President, and distinguished passengers,” he quoted the pilot as saying.
Adesina also shared that President Buhari made a total of 94 trips during his tenure as Nigeria’s president, listing all the countries visited by the former president.
