The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority has said it is investigating the circumstances surrounding the protest by some Nigerian passengers onboard an Air France flight, who engaged airline staff in a heated confrontation over alleged poor in-flight service.
The incident was captured in a video that surfaced on social media, triggering a wave of complaints from passengers about the airline’s service.
The NCAA said its investigation would determine when the incident actually occurred.
In the video, passengers are seen engaging in a shouting match with flight attendants, accusing them of denying passengers water during the flight and speaking to them disrespectfully.
The confrontation escalated after one of the attendants allegedly told a passenger to “shut up,” a remark that drew sharp reactions from other Nigerians onboard.
A female flight attendant later threatened to call the police, a move that further angered the passengers.
“Let them call police, we are not scared of police,” one passenger shouted in the footage.
Another added, “You want to call police on us because we dey talk?”
As the argument intensified, two male airline officials joined the female attendant in an attempt to manage the situation.
However, several passengers continued to complain that they were not offered water throughout the flight.
“This is not normal. Why can’t you give us water to drink? It is not normal,” a woman was heard shouting.
Another passenger accused the airline of treating Nigerians without dignity.
“Don’t you know we are human beings? Let us go, we want to go,” he said.
Speaking in an interview with Sunday PUNCH, the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the NCAA, Michael Achim
ugu, said preliminary findings by the aviation regulator indicated that the incident did not occur within the timeframe being suggested online.
He insisted that the viral video showing the passengers was not recent and was not connected to any Abuja flight, contrary to claims on social media.
The NCAA publicist said, “That video is old, not recent. I checked with our Consumer Protection Officers yesterday (Friday), and Air France did not even operate any Abuja flights yesterday, definitely not.”
According to Achimugu, the NCAA is still investigating the exact circumstances surrounding the footage, including where and when the incident actually occurred, noting that it might have taken place outside Nigeria.
