I first came to Mogadishu just before Xmas ‘92. It was dark and we landed at the airport the evening before the US Navy Seals were caught by CNN coming up the beach just to the north. It’s was then, and still is, a challenging place to aviate into.
Weapons are plentiful and when combined with the use of narcotics they are often fired randomly at anything, including aircraft. So it’s worth avoiding flying over any built up areas, period. This was the results of a food for weapons “swap meet”.A great way to mitigate threats 
You will now understand why all #aircraft flying into here would want to remain over the water at all costs. A standard go around has the potential to be problematic. They always land & depart over the water, this avoiding risks from small arms fire.
If we compare this 727 to a normal operation of a cargo airliner into East Midlands then I accept that this is way off the reservation. However, without condoning their actions, there are more complexities to this type of operation where pseudo military SOPs are often used.
Often in the wake of conflict there is significant infrastructure rebuilding and this relies on civilian pilots placing themselves at some risk to deliver loads. I’m sure you all remember the DHL A300 that was hit by a SAM in Iraq. They need to mitigate some of that risk somehow
I’ve tried to add a bit of balance as too why the pilots would consider this manoeuvre. The fact there’s two captains on the flight deck may suggest they level of experience required by the crew to fly here. It does look to be spontaneous but the lesser of two evils perhaps 🤷🏻♂️
Rebuilding after conflicts takes risks and crews from the UN and other operators accept these risks by operating in a non-conventional manner to complete the mission as safely and as professional as possible. This isn’t reckless risk taking for fun.
The last time I landed at Mogadishu, I was wearing body armour and also sitting on a flak jacket to protect my “jewels”. Whilst the 727 manoeuvre is unconventional and probably risky, I wouldn’t judge as I have no idea of the current threat from ground fire or similar. #AvGeek
