…As local airlines on-time performance remains sluggish
By Chinelo Obogo
Despite ongoing reforms and collaborative efforts between the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and local carriers, flight delays and cancellations remain deeply entrenched, dampening passenger confidence and stalling the sector’s quest for reliability.
Daily Sun’s airlines performance data analysis, sourced from the regulatory agency and spanning the recovery period from post-COVID 2021 to 2024, reveals a rather unsettling truth — that improvement has been elusive. Nigeria’s domestic air travel continues to be plagued by disruptions.
In 2021, as the aviation sector began to emerge from the havoc caused by the pandemic, domestic airlines recorded 41,328 flight delays and 542 cancellations. However, 2022 witnessed a deterioration in on-time performance. The number of domestic flight delays surged to 47,144, marking a 14.07 per cent increase compared to the previous year. Flight cancellations also saw a spike, reaching 795 — a 46.68 per cent rise from 2021. This indicated growing operational strain within the sector.
Data from the NCAA showed that in 2023, there were a total of 40,512 domestic flight delays and over 400 cancellations. Air Peace, Max Air, and Arik Air were among the airlines with the highest number of delayed flights.
The most recent data for 2024 paints a mixed picture. While the number of domestic flight delays saw a decrease to 33,235 — a 19.58 per cent reduction compared to 2021 and a 29.51 per cent decrease from 2022 — the issue of cancellations took a turn for the worse. A staggering 1,189 domestic flights were cancelled, representing a 119.37 per cent increase compared to the 542 cancellations in 2021 and a 49.56 per cent rise from the 795 cancellations in 2022. Air Peace recorded the highest number of both delays and cancellations in the domestic sector. Arik Air also experienced a high number of delays and cancellations, while for the international carriers, Delta Air Lines, ValueJet, and Uganda Air reported the most delays.
While the likelihood of experiencing a delay might have slightly improved compared to the peak in 2022, for Nigerian air travelers, the chances of their flight being cancelled altogether have significantly increased since 2021. On its part, the NCAA has repeatedly held stakeholder meetings with the airline operators to brainstorm on how the issue of flight disruptions can be addressed. To tackle the increasing challenges faced by passengers, such as flight delays and cancellations, the regulatory agency, last year, selected a blockchain-based platform to provide immediate relief to stranded or dissatisfied passengers while minimising operational risks for airlines.
Dispute over NCAA’s data
It is noteworthy, however, that there has been a dispute between the regulatory agency and airlines over conflicting flight performance data. Daily Sun’s analysis revealed that the data airlines published for 2024 didn’t match the official NCAA statistics.
For instance, Air Peace and Green Africa reported higher flight operations and fewer delays than what was reflected in NCAA records. Green Africa published its August 2024 performance on its official X handle, stating it had 456 scheduled flights, with 453 operated, 53 delayed, and four canceled. However, NCAA data for the same month reported 416 operated flights, 101 delays, and four cancellations for the airline. Similarly, for October 2024, Green Africa said it operated 172 flights out of 176 scheduled, had 32 delays, and four cancellations, while the NCAA recorded 163 operated flights, 64 delays, and one cancellation for the airline in the same period.
Air Peace’s report also differed from NCAA’s data. In its performance report for January 2024, the airline published on its official X handle that it scheduled 2,759 flights, operated 2,627, rescheduled 319, and cancelled 68, while 761 flights were delayed. But in NCAA’s report for the same period (January 2024), the regulatory body said the airline operated 2,164 flights, delayed 1,171, and cancelled 39. For March 2024, Air Peace said it scheduled 2,759 flights, operated 2,700, rescheduled 122, delayed 600, and cancelled 30, while the NCAA, in its report, says that the airline operated 2,107, cancelled 10, and delayed 881.
Similar discrepancies were found in reports by Ibom Air and United Nigeria Airlines. Ibom Air’s 2024 scorecard published on its X handle reported 9,155 operated flights out of 9,582 scheduled, with 1,977 delays and 427 cancellations, but NCAA data showed 7,856 operated flights, 2,739 delays, and 140 cancellations. United Nigeria Airlines (UNA) faced similar inconsistencies. For February, the airline said it successfully scheduled 847 flights, of which 805 were operated as planned. It experienced 34 canceled flights and delayed 283. The regulator, however, said for the same period, the airline operated 690 flights, delayed 665, and cancelled 22. For March 2024, the airline said that out of its 685 scheduled flights, 681 were successfully operated, four were cancelled, and 79 delayed. But the NCAA, in its report, stated that the airline operated 655 flights, cancelled eight, and delayed 324.
The inconsistencies have sparked concern among industry stakeholders, who are calling for more accuracy in data reporting of flight cancellations and delays, urging that any flight canceled on the day of operation should be officially counted to reflect the true state of airline performance.
Passenger rights
While the flight disruptions have not gotten better, the Consumer Protection Unit of the NCAA has stepped up the campaign to educate airline passengers about their rights, according to the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig. CARs) 2023 Part 19. This regulation is designed to enhance passenger satisfaction and create a level playing field for airlines, as it gives guidelines on what should be done when passengers are faced with issues such as flight cancellations, delays, or poor services from airlines and airports.
When there is going to be a delay, passengers must be informed 30 minutes before the scheduled departure time, and when a flight is delayed for two hours, the passenger is entitled to refreshments. If a flight is delayed beyond 10 p.m. till 4 a.m., or at a time when the airport is closed at the point of departure or final destination, the airline must provide transportation and hotel accommodation for the passenger. A passenger has the right to be compensated after a six-hour delay for domestic flights and four hours for international flights. A passenger is also entitled to compensation if a notice of flight cancellation was not given earlier than 24 hours for domestic flights or seven days for international flights. The compensation is 25 percent of the fare or passenger ticket price for all flights within Nigeria and 30 percent of the passenger ticket price for all international flights.
When passengers are offered re-routing to their final destination on an alternative flight, the arrival time of which does not exceed the scheduled arrival time of the flight originally booked by one hour (in respect of domestic flights) or three hours (in respect of all international flights), the operating airline may reduce the compensation provided to the passenger by 50 percent. If an airline has a schedule change, it must provide the passenger with notice of the change not later than 12 hours before the time of departure for domestic flights and not later than 14 days for international flights.
Passenger traffic
While international travel has shown some resilience and even growth in 2024, the decline in domestic passenger numbers raises concerns about the affordability of air travel for Nigerians. Daily Sun’s analysis of passenger traffic from the NCAA between 2021 and 2024 reveals a concerning trend.
2021
As global travel restrictions post-COVID eased, Nigeria’s airports witnessed a 45.32 per cent surge in overall passenger traffic, reaching 15,225,627 compared to the 2020 pandemic year. Domestic travel led this recovery, jumping by 43.41 per cent to 13,006,481 passengers, while international traffic saw an even more impressive 57.61 per cent growth, totaling 2,219,146. This increase was fueled by the resumption of operations, the entry of new domestic players like United Nigeria Airlines and Green Africa Airways, and government support aimed at revitalising the sector. However, even in this recovery phase, the persistent issues of flight delays remained a significant pain point for travelers.
2022
The momentum of 2021 appeared to stabilise in 2022, with overall passenger numbers slightly increasing to 16,172,433. Domestic traffic saw a rise to 12,669,641, while international figures also went up to 3,503,722. Flight operations increased in both sectors, with domestic airlines operating 80,328 flights and international carriers managing 13,003. However, the challenges of delays and cancellations intensified. Domestic delays increased to 47,144, and cancellations rose to 795. International delays also increased to 4,628, with cancellations at 82. This suggests that while passenger numbers held steady, operational efficiency became a concern.
2023
By 2023, there was a shift in air travel, as overall passenger traffic saw a slight decrease to approximately 15,685,272. Domestic travel experienced a drop to 12,050,144, indicating diminishing purchasing power among passengers amidst increases in airfares. International traffic also saw a slight decline to 3,635,128.
2024
Overall passenger traffic remained stable at 15,685,273, but domestic passenger numbers witnessed an over 10 per cent reduction, plummeting to 11,549,443. In contrast, international passenger traffic saw a slight increase to 4,135,750.
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