Ahead of the yuletide festivities, there are fears that the issue of flight delays and cancellations bedevilling the aviation sector might not be over soon, Daily Trust reports.
Despite the high cost of flight tickets, the security challenges in the country as well as increased economic activities have boosted passengers’ turnout at most airports in the country, even as new airlines are entering the sector and others opening more routes.
The Acting Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Engr. Mathew Pwajok, recently declared that insecurity, expansion in the economy, and the upsurge in political activities in the country account for the increase in demand for air travel.
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Findings by Daily Trust revealed that the departure halls at major airports are now constantly filled with passengers arriving or preparing for departure.
But ahead of the yuletide, the airlines said they anticipate increased passenger movement as more people are expected to arrive into the country while more domestic passengers would be recorded across major routes.
For instance, checks by our correspondent showed that most flights from December 20 to 23 are either fully booked or have only a few seats left, while the fares have also gone up. Lagos-Enugu flight on Air Peace is sold for N100,000 for one way as against the N75,000 being minimum price.
The Ibom Air flight to Port Harcourt costs N88,000 for Friday, December 23, as of the time of filing this report, while an Owerri flight ticket now costs more than N90,000 on most of the airlines.
Amidst the rush in the yuletide booking by passengers, there are fears of flight disruption occasioned by the declining airport infrastructure, and the harmattan haze, among other factors.
Already, passengers across the airports are complaining about missing their flights or experiencing delays.
A passenger, Engr Epkema, travelling to Uyo, who spoke with one of our correspondents, said, “I missed my flight because of the hold-up on my way to the airport, especially the few kilometres to the tollgate and between the tollgate and the terminal building area.
“I spent over 20 minutes between the tollgates coming to the terminal building. I had to alight from the vehicle to trek because it was faster trekking, but I wasn’t early enough, so I missed my flight.
“However, I’m happy because the flight left as scheduled. So it was my fault I missed the flight. As per the pressure, you can see a large crowd.
“Although at Ibom Air counter, there was no delay, but you can see the pressure at the other airlines’ counters. It is chaotic there with the crowd. I guess it is because of the season.”
Another passenger, Yasir Abubakar, also complained about having to spend too much time on the queue at the terminal of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja.
“You will have to be here on time because the airport is really busy. This is the holiday season and a lot of people are traveling, so I can understand the pressure. I have a long queue in front of me now. But it’s moving gradually. It’s quite stressful.”
An Abuja-Uyo bound passenger, Miss Joy, lamented that her flight was shifted by Air Peace for one hour.
“Air Peace shifted my flight to Uyo by an hour and there was no message until I got to the airport to manage my flight. Imagine if I had a scheduled meeting, I would have missed it.”
Our correspondent reports that airlines have voiced their frustrations over the inadequate check-in counters at Abuja Airport, which results in flight delays due to the slow pace of passenger facilitation. More often than not, about six airlines may be struggling to use two check-in counters and process their passengers almost at the same time.
Another passenger, Mrs Ngozi described the situation at Abuja airport as “horrible.”
“The crowd is large, and there are not enough check-in counters. During this festive period, they should have more counters to process passengers faster. You can imagine the crowd, even in front of me, still waiting. It is a challenge.”
In Lagos, the situation is not different but better than what is being experienced in Abuja due to the availability of several terminals for passenger facilitation.
Apart from the Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal 2 (MMA2), the General Aviation Terminal (GAT) which is the main MMA domestic terminal, has several halls used by various airlines including Air Peace, Arik Air, Overland and Green Africa.
Our correspondent who was at the MMA2 reports that passenger facilitation was going on without hitches despite the early morning rush.
The Vice-President of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Mr Allen Onyema, told our correspondent that while the operators were prepared for the rush associated with the yuletide season, there must be corresponding airport infrastructure that would aid passenger facilitation.
Onyema, who is the chairman of Air Peace, said, “We are prepared whether there is a Yuletide season or not; we are always prepared, but we need correspondingly good infrastructure to make it happen.
“In a situation where the infrastructure is lacking, there is going to be a problem. The airlines are prepared, they have good planes, the NCAA is alive to its responsibilities, regulating us properly, and safety is assured.
“The AON has written to the ministry, we have written to FAAN on the issue of the Abuja check-in terminal. Nine or 10 airlines in a very small place is crazy.
“What we are asking for is the expansion; the old international terminal is lying fallow. Some of the airlines should be made to go there so we would have enough counters for check-in.
“In a situation where you are given two counters and you are checking in thousands of people, delay will surely come. That is why I tell the flying public to stop blaming the airlines for delays; they should look at some of the factors.”
In addition to the issue of airport infrastructure, this is the period of harmattan haze with reduced aircraft visibility.
For instance, flight operations to Ilorin, Kwara State this week were greatly impaired by the weather, as many flights could not land at the airport due to poor visibility. Hundreds of passengers of airlines like Air Peace, Overland and Green Africa were stranded.
Similarly, Asaba flights were affected by weather, as the Lagos-Asaba and Abuja-Asaba flights were delayed due to bad weather at the destination airport.
Commenting on the impending yuletide rush, the acting General Manager, Public Affairs, FAAN, Mrs Faithful Hope-Ivbaze, said FAAN is already used to managing the Christmas and New Year period, adding that it is putting in place necessary facilities to ensure seamless operations.
She also said the security in and around the airport environment has been improved to meet the pressure that comes with the huge traffic of people at this time.
Hope-Ivbaze said facilities at the airports are being improved for comfort and a better customer experience.
Aviation analyst and former commandant of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Group Capt. John Ojikutu, rtd, in an interview with Daily Trust said the problem has to do with the available infrastructure at the terminal.
He said, “Except at the MM2 where the boarding gates number about eight, there are no other airport passenger terminals that have boarding gates that are more than two.
“Imagine the number of departures in the early hours from Lagos with one boarding gate and where there are not more than two buses transporting passengers from the terminals to the aircraft!
“That alone and the checkpoint screening from the airport management or processing of passengers’ traffic can cause a minimum of 30 minutes delay for just a flight.”
On Air Traffic Control (ATC) management, he noted that there is one taxiway to the active runway at most airports, adding, “You can imagine the number of aircraft that can be at the holding point waiting for a turn to enter the runway for takeoff.” It might take up to five minutes delay from one aircraft to the other.
“Imagine the MMA, where you have six departures in the morning while the first aircraft could have 40 minutes delay from the terminal departures, the second could be 50 minutes, third 60 minutes, fourth 80 minutes, etc.
“These can only be so timed if there are no arrivals, which can cause additional delays at the holding point.
“Thirdly, not many terminals have adequate screening machines for the screening of the checked-in baggage and not many have adequate skilled and certified AVSEC personnel for the screening of baggage.”
Speaking with our correspondent, the spokesman of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) the apex regulatory agency, Mr Sam Adurogboye, insisted that while flight delays and sometimes cancellations are inevitable, passengers must always be informed beforehand of what to expect.
From Abdullateef Aliyu, Lagos and Chris Agabi
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