Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has directed airline operators to ensure that passengers who display unruly behaviour are not allowed to board flights.
Director of consumer protection and public affairs of NCAA, Michael Achimugu, gave the directive at a meeting with domestic airlines in Abuja on Wednesday.
He said the measure was part of efforts to address the recurring issue of passenger misconduct.
Mr Achimugu said no pilot should fly an aircraft with an unruly passenger on board, stressing that the person must be removed by security or the matter resolved before departure.
He noted that cabin crew members must be allowed to perform their duties without harassment.
He urged aggrieved passengers to escalate complaints about flight disruptions and other infractions to NCAA for regulatory intervention rather than resort to assault on airline staff.
“Paying for a service doesn’t give you the right to assault or be unruly,” he said, adding that while passengers deserve quality service for high airfares, airlines’ staff must be treated with dignity.
On her part, senior special assistant to the director general of NCAA, Ifueko Abdulmalik, said airlines must improve communication with passengers during flight disruptions and adhere to refund regulations.
Representatives of airlines present, including Arik, Ibom, Aero, United Nigeria, Green Africa, Max Air, Rano Air, ValueJet, Air Peace and Overland, also raised concerns about frequent assaults on their staff and poor airport infrastructure.
The directive follows recent incidents of unruly behaviour by passengers, including that of Comfort Emmanson on an Ibom Air flight from Uyo to Lagos.
Emmanson was accused of refusing to switch off her phone before take-off, attacking crew members on arrival, tearing a flight attendant’s wig, slapping her repeatedly and attempting to use a fire extinguisher as a weapon.
She was later restrained by security, charged in court and remanded at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre in Lagos.
The case came days after separate incidents involving Fuji musician Wasiu Ayinde, also known as K1 De Ultimate and Senator Adams Oshiomhole, both accused of unruly behaviour toward airline staff.
