Travel News

By Olasunkanmi Akinlotan

About 2,000 air passengers lost 19,274 pieces of luggage between January and June this year, the Federal Government has revealed.

Data obtained from the half-year report of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, an agency of the Federal Government that regulates civil aviation, further indicated that 19,250 passengers were delayed for long hours during the review period.

Many air passengers in Nigeria face challenges including the loss of personal belongings and ongoing frustrations with the poor experiences they encounter at various airports.

Passengers experience delayed or abrupt cancellations of scheduled flights at various airports severally.

NCAA data showed that 35,398 flights operated by 13 local carriers experienced 16,945 delays, while 26 international airlines had 2,305 flight delays out of the 7,144 flights operated within the same period.

The 13 domestic carriers cancelled 696 flights within the period, representing two per cent of the total 35,398 flights operated by the airlines.

The data indicated that 48 per cent of total local flights were delayed by domestic operators with Dana Air getting the highest number of delays. It recorded 69 per cent flight delays, as the airline delayed 999 flights out of a total of 1,446.

Aero Contractor had 37 per cent delays with 1,992 operations. Arik Air had 59 per cent delays, indicating 1,378 delays out of its 2,331 flights operated within the period.

The report showed that Overland Airways, Air Peace, Max Air, Ibom Air, United Nigeria Airlines, Green Africa Airways, ValueJe, Rajo Air, and NG Eagles also recorded flight delays.

Air Peace, the biggest Nigerian airline, had 11,111 flights with 5,350 of the flights delayed, representing 48 per cent. The airline’s performance was better than Max Air but worse than Overland Airways.

The half-year report showed that  Azman, which only flew 145 times, had 76 delays, indicating 52 per cent flight delays within the period.

The document showed that Aero Contractors had 33 cancelled flights, which was two per cent of its total flights; Arik Air had 32 cancelled flights, representing one per cent of its total operations.

Overland Airways had 57 cancelled flights, showing five per cent of its total flights; Air Peace had 294 cancelled flights, which was three per cent of its total flights; Max Air had 23 flight cancellations, representing one per cent of its total flights, among others.

On the international routes, the airlines operated 7,144 flights, with 2, 305 delays and 69 cancellations to and from Nigeria.

Eight international carriers delayed 40 per cent and above of their flight abd they include Delta Airlines, Cronos, Turkish Airlines, South African Airway, Air Peace, British Airways, Kenya Airways, and Air Cote d’Ivoire.

The United States carrier, Delta Airlines topped the list of airlines with the most flight delays among the international carriers, with 63 per cent of its flights delayed either inward or outward of Nigeria.

During the first six-month period, Delta flew 180 times but had 113 delays and outrightly cancelled flights seven times.

Cronos was trailing Delta with 60 per cent of flight delays out of its 25 flights with 15 delays, but zero cancellations.

Turkish Airlines operated 284 flights but had 148 delays, maintaining a third position on the list having delayed 52 per cent of its total flights. The airline also had five cancelled flights, showing two per cent of its total operations.

South African Airways operated 76 flights, 36 were delayed, showing 47 per cent of its total operations.

Air Peace with 888 flights had 409 delays, which was 46 per cent of its total operations. The airline also had six flight cancellations, showing one per cent of its total flights within the period.

British Airways operated 354 flights in and out of Nigeria in the first six months of 2024 and recorded 141 delays, representing 40 per cent of its total operations. It also cancelled one per cent of its total flights within the period.

Kenya Airways and Air Cote d’Ivoire contributed 45 and 40 per cent to the menace of flight delays during the period.

Kenya Airways with 146 flights, had 85 delays and cancelled two per cent of its flights. Air Cote d’Ivoire had 355 flights and 141 delays, indicating 40 per cent of the total delays and eight cancelled flights or two per cent.

Passengers react

Adeola Oluremi, a UK outbound passenger told our correspondent on Monday that she had lost valuables “without any clear explanation.”

She said, “The day I was coming back from the US and I found out that my bag could not be found, I almost ran mad, I cried profusely. To get back what I lost, it cost me thousands of dollars.”

A staff of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria who spoke in confidence due to the lack of authorisation to speak on the matter said issues of delay and loss of passengers’ belongings by airlines had become rampant at the Lagos airport.

The civil aviation law, Part 19 of the NCAA regulations states that in the case of damages or loss of baggage, the affected passenger on the international route should be compensated with $170 while N10,000 is applicable to passengers of the same fate on the domestic routes.

On delayed or cancelled flights for domestic flights, the Act also stated, “For domestic flights, when an operating air carrier reasonably expects a flight to be delayed beyond its scheduled time of departure, it shall provide the passengers with a reason(s) for the delay within 30 minutes after the scheduled departure time and the assistance specified below:

“After two hours, refreshments as specified in section 19.10.1.1(a) and telephone calls, SMS, and E-mails as specified in section 19.10.1.2; Beyond three hours, reimbursement as specified in sub-section 19.9.1.1(a); And re-routing as specified in subsection 19.9.1.1(b)(c);

“At a time beyond 10 pm till 4 am, or at a time when the airport is closed at the point of departure or final destination, hotel accommodation and transport should be provided.”

For international flights, the same part of the law reads, “When an operating air carrier reasonably expects a flight to be delayed beyond its scheduled time of departure, it shall provide to the passengers the assistance specified below: (a) between two and four hours compensation as specified in sections 19.8.1.1(b) and telephone calls, SMS, e-mails as specified in 19.10.1.2; more than four hours, meal as specified in 19.10.1.1(b) and telephone calls, SMS, e-mails as specified in 19.10.1.2; and

“When the reasonably expected time of departure is at least six hours after the time of departure previously announced, the hotel accommodation assistance as specified in sections 19.10.1.1(c) and transport assistance as specified in 19.10.1.1(d). 19.6.2.2. In any event, the assistance shall be provided within the time limits set out in these regulations.”