The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has said that it would in the next few weeks begin public sensitization to further enlighten air passengers on steps to take in case of flight delays or cancellations by airlines.
This would enable NCAA to respond appropriately in cases where the rights of these passengers have been trampled upon by the airlines.
This was made known by the Director-General of NCAA, Capt. Musa Nuhu, during an interview with aviation journalists in Lagos over the weekend.
Capt. Nuhu also said that the law on 100% refund on air tickets in cases of a 3-hour delay is not new to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulation (NCAR), stressing that it was gazetted by the Federal Government and has been in existence since 2015.
The NCAA boss explained that before the 2015 amendment to the extant regulations, airlines were supposed to pay 100% compensation to passengers after 2 hours of delay, but the regulatory agency amended it to 3 hours in order to accommodate the complaints of the indigenous airlines and in a bid to ensure fair play.
Nuhu, however, clarified that in the case of natural phenomena, the airlines would not be sanctioned by the agency, describing it as a force majeure.
Capt. Nuhu further noted that airlines were given Air Operators’ Certificates (AOCs) based on the fact that they would comply with civil aviation regulations. He maintained that once any of the carriers is found wanting, the agency would not hesitate to sanction such an airline accordingly.
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The Federal Government recently stated that airline operators in the country must refund the full cost of travel tickets after a 2-hour delay.
The Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, who disclosed this read some of the rights of aviation passengers at the briefing of state house correspondents and charged the passengers to demand their rights whenever they are being trampled upon by airlines.
The minister, who said his ministry has started sanctioning some airlines who defaulted on consumer rights, however, urged passengers not to be unruly at airports.
