The pilot who conveyed the Super Eagles, Nigeria’s national men’s football team, to Libya for the second leg match of the AFCON 2025 qualifiers has revealed that the order to divert the plane from its destination in Benghazi was ascribed to the ‘highest authority’ in the country.
“The flight destination was Benghazi Benina, and we got the approval from the Libyan Civil Aviation Authority to land in Benghazi, but unfortunately, we were asked to divert to Al Abraq, which is almost 300 kilometres farther. It was not even our alternate. Something which is not good,” the pilot said in a clip that circulated on X on Tuesday.
What Libya did to Nigeria is deeper than we even thought.What if it turned out tragic? Because of football?Just listen to the pilot who flew the Super Eagles of Nigeria to Libya. pic.twitter.com/nulOExFKdm— @𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗷𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗯𝗼𝘆 (@OneJoblessBoy) October 15, 2024
READ MORE: UPDATED: CAF to Probe Super Eagles’ Maltreatment in Libyan Airport
The pilot explained that the unexpected diversion was risky because their original plan to land at Benghazi had informed the volume of fuel they had loaded to transport the plane, making the diversion order to land at a father destination unsafe.
“In aviation, we have our flight plan, we calculate the fuel to our destination, so we have to avoid this kind of thing because it may make a breach to safety,” he said in the clip.
“I accessed to land at Benghazi according to my flight plan and according to authorisation, but they said ‘no’, that it was from the highest authority.”
When the interviewer told the pilot that there were media reports that the flight’s diversion was his personal decision, he denied it.
“I warned them like eight times, and I warned them that I would probably be in trouble for fuel but they said it was from the highest authority. Thank God we made it safely to the other airport,” the pilot said.
The pilot also said that all the evidence of the situation was available and that it would be impossible to hide it.
READ MORE: ‘Staff Filmed, Laughed at Us’, Super Eagles Speak Out Against Poor Treatment in Libyan Airport
FIJ had earlier reported the maltreatment that the Nigerian players experienced at the Libyan airport on Monday.
FIJ also reported that the Super Eagles team decided to return to Nigeria, according to an X post by William Troost-Ekong, the team’s captain.
The Super Eagles arrived at the Al-Abraq Airport for the return leg of their 2025 AFCON qualifiers against Libya, which was set to be held on Tuesday, but the Nigerian players were stranded at the airport for up to 16 hours.
They returned to Nigeria on Monday.
The post VIDEO: Pilot Narrates How Libyan ‘Highest Authority’ Insisted Super Eagles’ Plane Go 300km Farther With Limited Fuel appeared first on Foundation For Investigative Journalism.