Keyamo directs NCAA to start shaming airlines publicly for violating aviation regulations

The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) says Festus Keyamo, minister of aviation and aerospace development, has directed the regulator to commence the public shaming of airlines that flout aviation regulations.

In an X post on Monday, Mike Achimugu, director of public affairs and consumer protection at NCAA, said airlines that keep passengers stranded at terminals until midnight before cancelling flights owe them hotel accommodation in line with the law.

“The regulations stipulate that passengers stranded between the hours of 2200 and 0400 be given accommodation,” Achimugu said.

“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?”

He added that NCAA officials cannot be exposed to avoidable risks while only discharging their duties to support airlines and protect passengers’ rights.

Achimugu said for sanctionable infractions, the authority will apply “the fullest measures possible” and will not abandon the letters of its regulations.

“The federal government has instructed that airlines be named and shamed by the NCAA. While we have done our best to advise per solutions to flight disruptions and why not nearly all cases are the fault of the airlines, the NCAA expects that operators must comply with the regulations in the event of a disruption,” the director said.

“In compliance with the directives from the federal government and the Honourable Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, the naming and shaming will commence.”

On January 31, 2024, Keyamo said the ministry will start publishing delayed or cancelled flights by domestic airlines.

The minister said airlines cannot be sanctioned by suspending their operations.

According to Keyamo, the issue is a delicate one and should be handled carefully so as not to discourage potential investors.