Air Peace offers 25 per cent ticket discount to passengers over aborted Lagos-Enugu flight

Air Peace has offered a 25 per cent discount on one-way domestic tickets to passengers affected by the disruption of its Lagos-Enugu flight on Monday, 21 September.

Human rights lawyer Inibehe Effiong disclosed this in a Facebook post on Wednesday, saying the airline had informed him of the offer in an email received earlier that day.

The flight, P47100, was scheduled to depart the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, at 6:45 a.m. on Monday but was rescheduled to 4:50 p.m., leaving passengers stranded at the airport for several hours.

Mr Effiong said the offer appeared to comply with a directive issued by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) following his complaint over the disruption.

According to the email shared by Mr Effiong, Air Peace apologised for the disruption and approved a “25 per cent discounted one-way ticket (exclusive of tax)” on any of its domestic routes as compensation.

The offer is valid for six months, excluding the period between 15 December 2026 and 15 January 2027.

Passengers seeking to claim the offer were asked to contact the airline’s call centre with their previous booking reference, a scanned copy of their travel passport and details of their proposed new flight.

Mr Effiong, however, said the offer should not obscure what he described as the airline’s handling of passengers during flight disruptions.

“This modest effort by Air Peace to assuage me and other aggrieved passengers should not detract from the fundamental issue, namely: the perennial lackluster, arrogant and frustrating attitude of the company,” he said.

He described the Lagos-Enugu incident as “not an isolated occurrence”, alleging that flight cancellations and delays had become common with the airline.

71 per cent delays

Mr Effiong also referred to the NCAA’s August 2026 flight disruption data, which showed that 1,330 of the 1,864 Air Peace flights captured in the regulator’s dataset were delayed, representing 71.4 per cent.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that NCAA data showed 666 of the delays lasted between 16 minutes and one hour, while 400 lasted between one and two hours. Another 156 flights were delayed by two to three hours, while 108 were delayed by at least three hours. Seven flights were cancelled.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Air Peace, however, disputed the NCAA figures, saying the regulator recorded only 1,864 of the 2,564 flights it operated in August.

The airline also attributed most of its delays to factors outside its control, including airport congestion, industrial action and bird strikes.

Mr Effiong said the NCAA’s intervention in his case was welcome but called for stronger regulation to protect passengers.

“While the swift response of the NCAA in this case is commendable, there is no doubt that we need a stiffer and stronger regulatory framework in the aviation industry to protect the rights of air passengers,” he said.

He added that passengers would continue to hold airlines accountable for their treatment of travellers.

NCAA investigation

PREMIUM TIMES reported that the NCAA had earlier directed Air Peace to prepare a compensation package for passengers affected by the Lagos-Enugu disruption after its preliminary investigation found that passengers had received incorrect notification about the flight.

According to the regulator, the flight had been rescheduled due to disruptions the previous night, but passengers booked on the morning service were not properly informed.

The NCAA said Air Peace initially claimed passengers had been notified. However, after Mr Effiong produced the message he had received, the airline’s station and duty managers reportedly confirmed that it had been sent in error.

The regulator directed the airline to comply with Part 19 of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations 2023, which sets out passengers’ rights and airlines’ obligations during flight disruptions.

The regulations provide for compensation in eligible cases involving domestic flight cancellations, as well as obligations regarding information, refreshments, communication, rerouting, refunds, and accommodation, subject to applicable conditions and exceptions.