An Ibom Air flight, inbound Abuja from Uyo, was reportedly cancelled after a passenger’s disruptive behaviour.
In a video seen by TheCable, irate passengers questioned the airline’s officials over their failure to deboard the individual who prevented the flight from taking off.
Narrating the incident in a post on X on Saturday, Michael Achimugu, director of consumer protection and public affairs at the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), said the flight, set to depart Uyo by 5:30 pm on January 8, was delayed after the passenger refused to travel without her checked-in luggage.
He said the passenger’s luggage was offloaded due to weight restrictions.
“Her actions (captured below by other irate passengers) ensured that 89 other passengers on board lost valuable time, money, and opportunities,” Achimugu posted.
“She also caused Ibom Air millions of naira plus a serious scheduling conundrum.
“All passengers had been informed during check-in that, due to weight restrictions, some or all of their luggage may not arrive on the same flight.
“Passengers with luggage above 20kg signed indemnity forms in this regard, while those whose bags were in the region of 20kg were informed verbally that their bags would arrive on the next scheduled flight. They agreed, including this passenger.”
After boarding, Achimugu said, the passenger noticed that her bag was not among the luggage loaded into the bowels of the aircraft.
“She angrily stepped down from the aircraft and insisted that her bags be loaded. Otherwise, Nobody was going to fly,” the NCAA official said.
“Even the intervention of FAAN AVSEC and the pilot did not let her budge. The pilot offered to carry her checked-in bag in the cabin, but the size did not fit.
“All the while, the pilot was taking note of the time because Uyo was a sunset airport, and the airspace would be shut down any moment.
“AVSEC then explained to the angry passenger that she would have to be deboarded if she refused to travel without the bag.
“She asked to be allowed to pick her handbag from the cabin, only to get in there and block the aisle, insisting that the flight would not depart without her bags.
“Among the 89 other passengers was an infant and a chef who was travelling to provide paid service to a big client in Abuja.
“Despite all pleas, she held the plane hostage until the airspace was closed. Consequently, the pilot had to announce a cancellation of the flight.
“It was at that moment that other passengers became irate. Had AVSEC and Ibom Air personnel led by Amaka Echetabu not been on top of their game, the unruly passenger would have been lynched.”
Achimugu said the passenger claimed that her luggage was delayed in December.
“She didn’t want a repeat of that situation. Ibom Air did, in fact, deliver her bags to her. They ensured that they got to her all the way in Aba,” he added.
“If the airline has proven its efficiency by bringing your luggage to you in a city where there was no airport just last month, by what antecedent do you insist they’d not deliver to Abuja this time?
“Why agree to this at the check-in counter, only to become unmanageably unruly during boarding?”
‘FLIGHT OPERATIONS HAVE WEIGHT RESTRICTIONS’
The NCAA spokesperson also explained that flight operations have weight restrictions, adding that in festive seasons, people often travel with more luggage than they normally would.
“Airlines are allowed to short-land baggage so long as: a. They inform the passenger and, b. Passengers are paid their first needs compensation on arrival, c. The bags arrive on the earliest possible flight,” he added.
“The regulations state firmly that no provocation justifies violence at the airport. Certain acts, especially holding up the movement of an aircraft through means of violence, could be interpreted as terrorism depending on the severity (to be determined by the police).”
Achimugu, however, said the passenger is being prosecuted in court.
He also appreciated the timely intervention of the aviation security officers in saving the passenger’s life.
“The airline had to provide immediate refreshment, transportation for passengers who were resident in Uyo, and hotel accommodation for those who came from out of town at great and avoidable cost,” he said.
“This means that the airline would have catered twice for the same flight.”
Achimugu said the NCAA would continue to educate stakeholders about unruly behaviour and the concomitant penalties.
[TheCable]