The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority has directed Air Peace to compensate passengers affected by a delayed Lagos-Enugu flight on Monday after its preliminary investigation found the airline sent wrong notification.
The intervention followed a complaint by human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong who said his 6:45am flight from Terminal One, Murtala Muhammed Airport Lagos to Enugu was rescheduled to 4:50pm, causing him to miss a court appearance in Enugu fixed for definite hearing.
Effiong said he checked in the previous night, arrived at 5:50am, and noticed Air Peace was calling only passengers who were meant to fly to Enugu and Owerri on Sunday while Monday passengers were asked to wait. After about an hour, officials announced the delay till evening. He said he also got a reminder at 2:01am asking him to report for the flight.
The NCAA through Director Public Affairs and Consumer Protection Michael Achimugu said the disruption was a ripple effect of Sunday night operational issues but said the airline ought to have informed Monday morning passengers that the flight had been rescheduled. He said the Station Manager and Duty Manager confirmed the message was sent in error.
Achimugu said timely and honest information is key and that the wrong notification cannot be classified as force majeure. The authority has directed Air Peace in compliance with Part 19 of NCAA Regulations 2023 to come up with a compensation package for affected passengers and to clarify if passengers were taken to a hotel for care while waiting.
