British Airways on Friday stopped the airlift of 58 Abuja-London-bound passengers due to a faulty door on the aircraft at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.
LEADERSHIP gathered that the seats around the door had to be kept unoccupied for safety reasons, affecting 58 passengers.
Confirming the development, the director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, noted on his X (formerly Twitter) handle that the action was taken for safety reasons.
Achimugu confirmed that the action was taken for safety reasons, adding that affected travellers were offered hotel accommodation. While 30 passengers accepted, 28 chose to return home.
“British Airways discovered that some of the seats on their aircraft were bad. As a result, they had to deny 58 passengers boarding this morning.
“Hotel accommodation has been provided, and 28 passengers opted to return home, while 30 accepted the offer.
“Affected passengers can file for compensation. Arrangements are being made to airlift them tomorrow morning.
“May I say this: The first resort in situations like this is to locate the NCAA Consumer Protection Officers at the terminal, and they will ensure that your right to care is protected (if the airline delays).”
In another post on X, Achimugu wrote: “The actual problem was a faulty door. So, the seats around the door had to be unoccupied for SAFETY REASONS.”
