Flight from Gambia lands in emergency and former FC Porto reports: “Inhuman heat and lack of oxygen” – CAN

The plane that took the team to CAN ended up returning to its starting point 9 minutes after take-off

The Gambia national team had traveled to Ivory Coast, where the African Nations Championship will be held starting next Saturday, which is scheduled for Wednesday. It took off… but the flight had to return to Banjul, the capital of Gambia, after 9 minutes. A distressing situation was reported on social media by Saidi Yanko, a former Porto player who represents Young Boys, from Switzerland.

The Gambia team traveled “32 hours in total from Saudi Arabia,” where they were training, to their home country, “with long stops in Istanbul and Casablanca.” “Today we were supposed to fly from Gambia to Côte d'Ivoire, to Canada. As soon as we boarded the small plane that was rented to transport us, we noticed the enormous heat in the cabin which made us sweat. The air conditioner will call us as soon as we reach heaven,” the crew assured. , began by describing Yanko.

“The inhuman heat combined with the lack of oxygen caused many people to suffer from severe headaches and severe dizziness. Furthermore, people began to fall into deep sleep minutes after entering the plane/take-off. While in the air, the situation worsened, leaving the pilot in a state of extreme anxiety.” “. “There was no other option but to begin an emergency landing at Banjul Airport 9 minutes after take-off. Which was done successfully,” said the right-back.

“Otherwise, the consequences could have been much worse, knowing what would have happened if we had been exposed to the situation for a longer period – on a plane, without oxygen… We are grateful that everyone feels healthy, but this is a situation that must Addressed before the Africa Cup of Nations. “This is unacceptable and must end with immediate effect.”

Janko joined FC Porto in the summer of 2018, but never made his official debut for the Dragons, having been loaned out to Nottingham Forest and Young Boys, and in 2020, he left permanently.

The Gambia national team is in the third group, which includes Senegal, Cameroon and Guinea Conakry. The first match will be next Monday, specifically against Senegalese neighbors.

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