PASSENGERS scheduled to fly from Abuja to Lagos on an Air Peace flight endured a frustrating evening on Thursday as their 5:45 pm flight was delayed for more than four hours. By 10:00 pm, angry passengers gathered at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport to protest and demand refunds.
One of the passengers, Sotide Abimbola (not real name), said she found out her flight had been rescheduled only after arriving at the airport. The flight, which was initially moved to 9:00 pm, was delayed again just 15 minutes before takeoff.
“I thought, ‘Okay, I’ll get home by 10’. But then they said they were delaying the flight again. I can’t leave the airport at that time. I am a woman, I don’t have a car, and it’s unsafe to move around that late,” she told FIJ.
Abimbola told FIJ that such indiscriminate rescheduling only put customers like her at risk.
“If we get to Lagos around 11 pm, I may have to sleep at the airport. I can’t chase buses at that time for security reasons. It’s so annoying. All other airlines have left.”
FIJ gathered that the flight eventually took off at about 10:45 pm and arrived Lagos approximately one hour later.
Delays Are Nothing New
This is not the first time Air Peace passengers have faced long delays. On November 19, Imafidon Oghenevo (not real name) recounted how a postponed flight from Benin to Lagos led to unexpected expenses.
His flight was originally set for 4:15 pm and moved to 6:15 pm, forcing him to pay extra for his hotel room.
In June 2023, passengers on a Lagos-to-Abuja flight had a similar experience. Their flight, scheduled for 2:15 pm, was shifted to 6:20 pm with little notice.
Despite arriving early, passengers found themselves stranded as the airline failed to meet the revised departure time.
Credit: FIJ
