Associated Press, "Nigeria Pilot Reportedly Ignored Advice"

          A plane crash that killed 96 people in Nigeria might have been averted if the pilot had heeded advice from air traffic controllers to wait for a lightning storm to clear before taking off, the aviation minister said Monday. Citing the decision as a possible cause of the third fatal passenger jet crash in this West African nation in a year, Aviation Minister Babalola Borishade said the government was preparing guidelines to stop such "reckless abuse of crew discretionary power."
          Borishade did not directly blame pilot error for Sunday's crash, and authorities were still investigating what brought down the Boeing 737 owned by the Aviation Development Co. The government ordered all of the privately owned airline's planes grounded indefinitely and suspended its flying license, Borishade said.
          The airline last suffered a crash in 1996 when one of its jets plunged into a lagoon outside Nigeria's main city, Lagos, killing all 143 aboard. The latest crash killed 96 of the 105 people aboard, including the pilot and Nigeria's top Muslim leader, Muhammadu Maccido. The jet smashed into savannah near Abuja airport and broke apart, scattering luggage and body parts across a wide area.

Learn more about the rights of the families of victims of airplane crash accidents.