British Airways flight forced into emergency landing after retired military chief dies on board

Originally due to arrive in the African nation at 5am on Monday, the flight was in the air for two-and-a-half hours after a Nigerian passenger fell ill.

The retired air vice marshal had been in the UK for cancer treatment and was returning to his home country when he died on board the BA aircraft.

The airline apologised to passengers for the disruption, who were reportedly left in a panic.

One pregnant woman suffered a medical episode due to the chaos, according to reports.

Her condition remains unclear.

A new flight was scheduled later in the day, which landed in Abuja at around 5.45pm.

The delay meant passengers arrived in Nigeria around 12 hours later than expected.

GB News has approached BA for comment.

Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (ABV) is the primary international airport in Nigeria's capital.

It is approximately 24 miles from Abuja's city centre.

In 2023, a new international terminal opened with the capacity to handle 15 million passengers annually.

It is the second busiest airport in Nigeria, after Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.

Plans to build a second runway to reduce heavy air traffic on the single existing runway are ongoing.

British Airways has been the subject of incidents involving passengers, causing disruptions to travel.

In August, some 20 passengers were ordered to leave a British Airways flight before it could take off in "unique" circumstances.

Flyers had been hoping to depart Italian holiday hotspot Florence for London City Airport when their pilot intervened.

One traveller, a British mother, revealed how staff had demanded that 36 people leave the aircraft, although only 20 were eventually required to disembark.