The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has directed Air Peace to provide compensation to passengers affected by the delayed Lagos-Enugu flight on Monday after a preliminary investigation found that the airline sent passengers the wrong notification about the flight.
The intervention followed a complaint by human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong, who said the disruption would cause him to miss a scheduled court appearance in Enugu State.
Effiong said he arrived at Terminal One of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, at about 5:50 am for Air Peace’s 6:45 am Lagos-Enugu flight after checking in the previous night.
He said passengers were kept waiting before airline officials announced that the flight had been rescheduled to 4:50 pm.
According to Effiong, he was scheduled to appear in court in Enugu that morning for a case fixed for definite hearing and had also booked a return flight with United Nigeria for 3:20 pm.
He said he became concerned after observing that Air Peace was initially calling passengers who had been scheduled to travel to Enugu and Owerri the previous day, while Monday’s passengers were asked to wait.
Effiong subsequently accused the airline of irresponsibility and criticised aviation regulators, arguing that Air Peace had repeatedly subjected passengers to disruptions without sufficient consequences.
Responding to the complaint, the NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, said the regulator would investigate the incident but rejected the suggestion that the authority was incapable of dealing with the airline.
“The NCAA cannot treat cases in advance. It is not a miracle centre and cannot tell that a disruption would happen BEFORE it happens. When it does happen, you report to the NCAA,” Achimugu said.
He nevertheless expressed sympathy with Effiong, saying, “This is not how we want the industry to be.”
Achimugu initially said the disruption appeared to have resulted from the ripple effects of operational problems from the previous day and disclosed that the NCAA had recently advised Air Peace to provide a buffer aircraft to reduce the impact of severe disruptions.
Following the regulator’s preliminary investigation, however, Achimugu said the airline should have informed passengers scheduled to travel on Monday morning that their flight had been rescheduled.
According to him, a senior management official of the airline initially maintained that passengers had been properly notified.
Achimugu later said Air Peace’s Station Manager and Duty Manager confirmed that the message sent to passengers was the one presented by Effiong and that it had been sent in error.
Achimugu later said Air Peace’s Station Manager and Duty Manager confirmed that the message sent to passengers was the one presented by Effiong and that it had been sent in error.
“The Station Manager and Duty Manager have confirmed that the messages sent out was the one you received, and that it was done in error,” he said.
The officials also acknowledged that the affected passengers should have received a notification informing them that the flight had been rescheduled.
The NCAA said Air Peace claimed that passengers had been taken to a hotel where they would receive care until the new boarding time, although the regulator said it was still working to independently confirm that claim.
Following its findings, the NCAA directed the airline to develop a compensation package for all affected passengers in accordance with Part 19 of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations 2023.
“We have asked that the airline, in compliance with Part 19 of the NCAA Regulations 2023, come up with a compensation package for affected passengers and let us know in good time,” Achimugu said.