- Safiu Kehinde
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Micheal Achimugu, has explained the reasons behind the authority don’t sanction airlines for all reported cases of flight delays and disruptions.
Achimugu gave the explanation in a video posted on his X handle on Monday.
While describing delays and disruptions as inevitable in the aviation sector, the NCAA boss maintained that not all disruptions automatically qualifies for sanctions.
He also noted that most of the delays and disruptions are not caused by the airlines.
‘The occurrence of a disruption does not automatically qualify an airline for sanctions.
‘The reason being that by the provision of the regulations, we understand, recognise, and acknowledge that flight disruption must continue to occur everywhere in the world.’ He said.
In respect to stranded passengers complaint over delay, Achimugu explained the provisions contained in the aviation regulations in respect to how an airline must handle cases of delays and disruptions.
‘Where they have occurred, the airline, by regulation, has duties of care to passengers. I doesn’t matter whose fault that disruption is.
‘One, message has been most consistent from my department and that is the fact that airlines, both Nigerian and international airlines, operating in Nigeria are not always a direct causes of these disruptions that occurred at the airports.
‘Now where a disruption occurs, the airline owes the passengers information every 30 minutes. Take note, timely and honest information.
‘Two hours into the delay, the airline is expected to offer its passengers light refreshments- biscuit, snacks, soft drinks, or water.
‘Six hours into the delay, the airline has to provide its passengers proper meals.
‘The airline also owe its passengers hotel accommodation between hours of 10pm to 4am, depending.’ He said.
For cases of delayed arrival of baggages, Achimugu further enlightened the public on the procedures involved in the recovery of such baggages.
‘In our experience here, we noticed that most passengers, when their bags are short-landed, they expect that because they filed their complaint with the CAA, by tomorrow, their bags compulsorily must also have arrived. That is not how it works.
‘By international regulations, especially the Montreal 1999 convention which Nigeria is signatory to, for international flights, the airline has up to 21 days to search for and reconcile you with your bags.
‘For domestic flights, it is seven days. After 21 days and the seven days for domestic, if your bag has not been found, the airline will then declare it lost and then initiate compensations.’ He said.
The NCAA boss there after delved into the reasons sanctions are not applicable to all cases of flight delays and disruptions.
‘On the reasons we don’t just move straight to sanctions is because there are processes. As far as the regulation is concerned, a passenger who has been affected must file a complaint called CA.
‘It is the shortform for cases. Until someone who has been affected filed a complaint, they may not neccessarily be able to look into some of those disruption cases.
‘By the regulation, after the passenger has filed the complaint, he can write LOI, Letter of Investigation, to the airline.
‘This is usually a percursor to enforcement where we ask the airline about the complaint.
‘If we get a satisfactory and the airline has fulfilled its duties of care, it is not possible to sanction that airline.
‘It is not possible or correct to sanction an airline because of a delay or disruption if they have fulfilled the regulations provided in the duties of care.’ He said.
Achimugu also explained how cases of delayed connecting flights are handled.
‘For instance, your flight has been delayed or you’ve landed in a transit airport for a connecting flight to Nigeria and the airline has not provided you hotel accommodation and then you filed to the NCAA saying they must put me on another aircraft or must give me hotel accommodation.
‘If the airline offers you another flight to Nigeria but through another routing and you accept it, you are no longer entitled to compensation.
‘If you don’t accept that route because it is not favourable for you and you go and pay for your own hotel and you came with the receipt and give it to the CA, the CA may be able to help you secure your refund and how compensation for certain scenarios.
‘This case is not general. It has to be a specific type of case.’ He said.
Meanwhile, Achmugu noted that in cases where stranded passsengers accept the duties of care offered to them by the airline, they are no longer entitled to compensation.
‘If you accept the duties of care that the airline has offered, you are not entitled to any compensation because you accepted it and the airline has flown you safe to your destination.
‘Where these have been met, you cannot sanction the airline.’ He said.
Achimugu however issued a note of caution as he warned against vandalisation of an airline property over flight delay or any disagreement.
‘I must issue a note of caution here, in all of these circumstances, the passengers do not have the right to begin destroying the airline properties.
‘The NCAA is not antagonistic to any airline or any other stakeholders.
‘Where the airlines are wrong, we say that they are wrong. Where the passengers are wrong, we will say that they are wrong.
We have excess digital footprints that prove that the NCAA has always taken a stand by the airlines where neccessary and by the passengers where neccessary.
‘This is why we are the unbiased umpires of this industry.’ He added.