Grace Omachoko
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has stated that defaulting airlines must pay compensations for flight cancellations and delays.
He made this known on Tuesday during a meeting with the heads of agencies under the ministry in Abuja.
Kayemo noted that the agency is well informed concerning the plight of Nigerians as regards cancelled and delayed flights, stating that they will enforce the laws relating to compensation.
“We are not deaf to the cries of Nigerians about delays and canceled flights. The law is there and we are looking at how to enforce those laws for compensation of Nigerians who bear the brunt of cancellation of flights and disrupting the activities.
“The process of grounding the airline or taking the airlines to court will create more problems. So if the reason for the delay and cancellation of flight is their fault they must pay compensation. And what I am suggesting is that if they don’t get cash back they must get some rebate when they buy next ticket.
“I have set up a committee to look into it such that they can generate a code that they can use when they want to purchase the next ticket.
“We are concerned about the passenger satisfaction and the safety of the air travelers,” he said. The minister directed the Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority to prepare a weekly catalogue of canceled flights.” He said.
He also instructed the Nigeria Safety Investigation Bureau to conclude all incidents of air accidents and mishaps in the next 10 days.
He said: “For the recent incidents that happened recently, some minor, and others classified as serious incidents although there were no fatalities. The NSIB is investigating these incidents and I have directed them that within 10 days from today they must submit their report of the incidents and what actually transpired.”