On 17th November, 2021 at about 08:29 h, an EMB-145LR aircraft with nationality and registration marks 5N-BWW, operated by United Nigeria Airlines Company Limited departed Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (DNAA) for Murtala Muhammed International Airport (DNMM) as scheduled flight NUA0505. On board were 43 passengers and four crew members (pilot, co-pilot and 2 cabin crew), with fuel endurance of 3 hours 17 minutes. Instrument Flight Rule (IFR) flight plan was filed for the flight. The Pilot was the Pilot Monitoring (PM) while the Co-pilot was the Pilot Flying (PF).
The aircraft was scheduled to operate six sectors for that day. The first sector was Lagos to Abuja which was uneventful. At about 08:30 h, NUA0505 requested startup clearance for the second sector of the day, from Abuja Ground Control (AGC). AGC granted approval for NUA0505 to start, with squawk code of 0417.
