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An Air Côte d’Ivoire DHC-8-400 chartered for the Gambia national football team turned around due to an air conditioning problem.
The group would leave the Gambian capital Banjul for Ivory Coast for the Africa Cup of Nations, an important African soccer tournament. Already during Get in Players and staff noticed that it was very warm. The temperatures in the African country are currently around 30 degrees. “The crew said before we left that there was a problem with the air conditioning, but that everything would be fine after we left,” Tom Saintfiet, coach of the Gambia national soccer team, said at the press conference BBC.
#REGARD 🔴 The players of the Gambia national football team lost consciousness during their flight to a game. There was a sudden drop in pressure and oxygen in the plane. The association said the players were uninjured and the plane was immediately returned to the airport. pic.twitter.com/fLp28Z41ta— Voice of Europe 🌍 (@V_of_Europe) January 11, 2024
DHC-8 reverses
Finally the DHC-8 took off. The heat continued on the plane. “We all fell asleep because there wasn’t enough oxygen.” Some players couldn’t stay awake. “The pilot noticed this and we had to turn back,” said Saintfiet. According to the trainer, oxygen masks did not come off. The pilots made their decision a few minutes later lift up Return to the departure airport. Video footage shows that the players and staff left the DHC-8 sweating. “People got headaches and if the flight had lasted half an hour longer, the whole team would have died,” said Saintfiet, who believes carbon monoxide poisoning could have occurred. Gambia Football Federation (GFF) chairman Lamin Kaba Bajo believes there is no evidence of this.
The social media hype that “the size of the plane is responsible for the lack of oxygen in the cabin” is untrue.
The chartered Air Côte d’Ivoire Dash 8-400 flight bound for Ivory Coast returned safely to Banjul Airport. The airport cited problems with cabin pressure and breathing. pic.twitter.com/HO2u1ZncOj— FL360aero (@fl360aero) January 11, 2024
Invest in training
Ultimately, the Gambia football team decided to train in Banjul. However, not everyone took part. “They (some players, editor’s note) still have headaches and that’s worrying, while some players are still dizzy,” said Saintfiet. It is not known when Gambia will still fly to Ivory Coast and whether this will be with the same DHC-8. The Gambia will play its first game of the Africa Cup of Nations against Senegal on Monday.
#Problem #DHC8 #fine #pilot