Angry Qatar Airways passengers cause uproar at Lagos Airport over delay

By Jite Eriabie 

There was uproar at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on Tuesday by some aggrieved passengers of Qatar Airways over the airline’s delay of their flight for two days.

They had besieged the airline’s check-in counter, demanding to be put on any available flight, to enable them to meet up with their engagements outside the country.

The passengers had on Sunday boarded the flight at 10:00 a.m. enroute Doha, to connect to their respective destinations, only to be disembarked due to operational reasons.

One of the passengers, Segun Agbetuyi, in a text message to newsmen said that they were taken to a hotel later on Sunday.

“They woke us all up at 4.30 a.m. this morning to bring us to the airport for boarding, only to get to the airport and find that no serious arrangements had been made,’’ he said.

The spokesperson for the Lagos Airport Police Command, DSP Joseph Alabi, who confirmed the development, said the issue had been resolved.

He said, “They have since left and the issue has been resolved. I learnt that there was a delay and the passengers were not happy.

“However, when I arrived, I saw things moving smoothly at the check-in and I was informed that arrangements have been made to convey them to their destinations.’’

On his part, a media consultant to the airline, who simply gave his name as Mike, said the passengers were agitated because they had been in the hotel for two days and their flight had been delayed.

“They needed to get to their destinations and so when they came in here, it was a crowd but we have sorted out the issue and put some of them on the flight.

“The few of them that are remaining, we are taking them to other airlines,” he said.

In accordance with the provisions of Part 19 of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (NCARs), 2015, Qatar Airways is obligated to compensate the passengers for the delay.