THE Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has instructed airlines to adhere to Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations 2023 Part 19 by offering refreshments to passengers and adopting alternative measures when confronted with flight delays and cancellations.
Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu acknowledged the NCAA’s awareness of disruptions in flights, conveying empathy to all affected passengers and recognizing the inconveniences caused over the past few days.
According to Achimugu, the NCAA has required all airlines to furnish passengers with prompt updates on flight disruptions, allowing them to make well-informed decisions about their travel plans.
In a press release titled “NCAA Empathizes with Passengers over Flight Delays and Cancellations”, the aviation agency noted its awareness of flight delays in different parts of the country during the holiday season.
It said, “the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) is aware of flight disruptions which have inconvenienced air passengers in the last couple of days and empathizes with all affected passengers for the inconveniences these disruptions may have caused.
“NCAA has mandated all airlines to provide timely flight disruption information to passengers to enable them to make informed decisions concerning their travels.
“NCAA is monitoring all operations and our consumer protection officers are on ground to monitor passenger handling procedures to ensure that airlines mitigate the inconveniences to passengers and provide care, refreshments and other alternative measures in line with Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations 2023 Part 19.”
Flight delays and cancellations especially during the holiday season is not uncommon in Nigeria. It also has significant economic implications for the country and its citizens. Passengers affected by these disruptions often incurred additional costs, including expenses for accommodation and transportation.
Many passengers were reportedly forced to pay extra monies to book a flight with another airline due to flight cancellations or delays. For example, a certain Mr. Simeon received a flight cancellation message from a certain airline and had to quickly search for another flight as he urgently needed to arrive Lagos.
Passengers often endured long waits for flight cancellation compensation, with no refunds given.
