What happened
During an arrival at Port Harcourt Airport, an aircraft experienced a landing gear malfunction that led to a belly landing on the runway. Following the initial impact, the aircraft slid for several dozen meters along the runway surface before coming to a complete stop. There were no injuries reported among the 66 occupants on board, all of whom were evacuated from the plane safely. However, the aircraft sustained damage that rendered it beyond repair.
Reports regarding the landing sequence indicate that the aircraft may have bounced during the touchdown phase. During the incident, a change in cockpit control occurred when the captain took command from the co-pilot, who was acting as the pilot in command.
Findings
An error in cockpit communication contributed to the gear configuration during the landing. The flight engineer, under the impression that the captain was beginning a go-around maneuver, retracted the landing gear. This action occurred while the aircraft was in the process of landing, contributing to the unintentional gear retraction and subsequent belly landing.