Scarcity of aviation fuel disrupts flight operations at Lagos airport

Scarcity of aviation fuel disrupts flight operations at Lagos airport .


The lingering scarcity of Jet A1, popularly called aviation fuel, on Monday disrupted flight operations at the Murtala Muhammed Airport 2 (MMA2) and
the General Aviation Terminal of the airport in Lagos. 

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that some domestic airlines had to re-schedule or cancel most of their flights following their inability to procure aviation fuel for their aircraft. NAN gathered that among the airlines affected were Aero Contractors, Dana, Azman, First Nation and Peace Airline.

 Some passengers travelling to Abuja, Kano, Kaduna, Owerri and Enugu were left stranded and frustrated when the cancellation of their flights were announced through the airport’s public address system.

 The situation prompted some of them to rush to the counter of Arik Air to purchase tickets as the airline was among the few which were having hitch-free operations.

 A passenger, Mrs Chioma Akabueze, told NAN that she was booked on a 10:00 a.m. flight in one of the affected airlines, but was later informed that all the airline’s flights for the day had been cancelled. “The announcement was made around 4.30 p.m. and it is very disappointing. I was supposed to hold a meeting with a client in Owerri by 2:00 p.m. and now, I have to reschedule,’’ she said.

 Another traveller, Mr Emma Akanni, said he had to pay a tout N40,000 to get him an Arik Air one-way ticket to Abuja, though the airline usually charges N51,600 for a to and fro ticket for the same destination. NAN reports that the Consumer Protection Department of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) had revealed in its 2016 First Quarter Report that domestic airlines recorded 8,478 cases of delayed flights.

 The report said a total number of 15,434 flights were operated by eight domestic airlines during the period under review, while 281 flights were cancelled. However, the airlines had attributed the situation, which led to over 50 per cent of their flights being delayed or cancelled, to the scarcity of aviation fuel and had appealed to the government to intervene in making the product available