NCAA summons domestic airlines over flight disruptions, passenger complaints

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has summoned all domestic airlines to a crucial meeting in Abuja following a surge in flight disruptions and mounting passenger complaints.

According to the agency’s Director of Public Relations and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, the meeting is scheduled for Wednesday at the NCAA headquarters. He confirmed the development in a post on his verified X handle.

Nigeria’s aviation sector has come under growing public scrutiny in recent weeks, with several reports of delays, cancellations, and incidents involving frustrated passengers at airports nationwide.

“The NCAA has invited all domestic airlines to a meeting in Abuja slated for tomorrow, Wednesday,” Achimugu announced.

He explained that the session will address a range of pressing issues, including “Unruly passenger behaviour and passenger handling protocols; Unresolved refund/compensation issues; Introduction of RFID bagtags and flight monitoring technology; Enforcement of phone switch-off instruction and protection for cabin crew as well as Improved travel experience for passengers.”

The move follows Achimugu’s earlier remarks that the NCAA, acting under federal government directives, would “begin naming and shaming” airlines that delay or cancel flights without providing the mandated care for stranded travellers.

In another post, he warned that failure to meet regulatory obligations puts consumer protection officers at risk when handling frustrated passengers.

He stressed that airlines have a duty to provide accommodation if flights are cancelled between 10 p.m. and 4 a.m., stating: “The regulations stipulate that passengers stranded between the hours of 2200 and 0400 be given accommodation.”

He added: “The situation where airline staff intentionally disappear, leaving NCAA Consumer Protection Officers to handle justifiably irate and frustrated passengers will no longer be tolerated.

“While one understands the challenges that operators face in our peculiar operating environment, whoever willfully ventures into a business and wants to remain in it must do it well.

“We must not always choose the easy way out. Don’t you want to be called ‘world class’? Don’t you want to compete at the highest level? If not for the sake of the passengers who trust you to safely fly them, what about for your own pride?”

Achimugu insisted that operators must comply with the law, noting that “for infractions that are sanctionable, the Authority will apply the fullest measures possible. We will not abandon the letters of our regulations.”

He emphasized that the federal government has directed the NCAA to enforce strict compliance and hold airlines accountable: “In compliance with the directives from the federal government and the Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, the naming and shaming will commence.”