Worried by the increasing complaints of passengers with regards to flight disruptions, Delays and cancellations, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority NCAA is set to sanction Airlines.
Acting Director General of the NCAA Chris Najomo who made this known at a stakeholders meeting in lagos stated that the issue of flight disruptions has far reaching implications for passengers, businesses as well as the credibility of the aviation industry and national development
He said “Air travel is not just about transporting passengers from one point to another, it is about doing so with reliability efficiency and accountability ”
He added that “When Delays and flight cancellations occur, they distrupt plans , cause financial losses and undermine passengers’ confidence in the aviation system ”
Najomo however noted that Delays and Cancellations are sometimes inevitable but poor management of this disruption is not,
“it is the responsibility of the airline to ensure that every Distruption whether due to operational, technical or weather related challenges is handled with utmost professionalism and regards for passenger’s right particularly as we are in harmattan season with poor weather conditions that will affect flight operations ”
The NCAA acting Director General also revealed that flight operations Data in September 2024 indicates that 5,291 domestic flights were operated with 2,434 Delays and 79 cancellations. In October 2024, 5,513 flights were operated with 2,791 Delays and 111 cancellations.
Najomo reminded operators of the NCA Regulations on passenger rights during disruptions as applied in the civil aviation consumer protection 2023, as they are mandatory obligations
He stressed that ” Non compliance with the regulations will not be tolerated and going forward, the NCAA will not hesitate to invoke the necessary penalties where violations are observed. I have instructed my team to monitor and enforce
The forum had in attendance stakeholders in the aviation industry, heads of other aviation agencies as well as airline operators.
