The passengers, who disembarked from an Arik Air flight, blocked the Abuja runway because the flight they took from Abuja to Calabar was not allowed to land in Calabar around 5.30pm for safety reasons - the runway lightening was poor, forcing the pilot to return the passengers to Abuja.
The passengers now felt the best way to express their anger was to prevent other planes from taking off or landing at the Abuja airport. Continue...
Arik Air spokesperson, Mr. Adebanji Ola, said that it was not the airline's fault that the Calabar airport was closed by the time the flight from Abuja got there.
He said,
“The flight was delayed because there was Very Important Personality movement and there was also some weather issues, it is not the fault of the airline that the plane could not land there. We are amazed that despite the security at the Abuja airport, passengers were still able to hijack the aircraft and hold other planes to ransom, that should not be the case.”RE: http://news.naij.com/48261.htmlREAD MORE: http://news.naij.com/48261.html
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123 comments:
Last time the landed us at uyo airport by 11pm. Its Arik's fault. D delay flights a lot without even informin d pasengers. Sucks!
I sure say if dem see one big boeing or airbus plane dey come dem go tear race
Nonsence
If the pilot took the chance to land that plane and it crashed would those passengers be alive to cause a demonstration. Very unintelligent people. You don't value your lives. Mchewwwww
Crazy people! Would they like the pilot to take a chance landing in poor visibility and kill them all? They should thank God they were safely returned to Abuja. Why disrupt other passengers who had nothing to do with Arik. You don't just stand on runways and taxiways. It's dangerous!!!
LoL
Make plan no crush them too. I learnt things are crushing people these days.
Wonders shall never cease- let them come and try that at Heathrow or JFK lol
Only in Naija
Linda A̶̲̥̅♏ I d first?
Momolytic momo
Lol
Arik air is in the habit of not treating passengers well at all. I've had very horrible and very unfair treatment from Arik in the past. They give a 'I don't send u' attitude when they are at fault. I doubt, however if the story above is complete bc I don't think reasonable people would block runways just bc a plane could not land in Calabar safely and made a detour back to Abuja. In any case, there should be more civil means of expressing angst than blocking runways. Did they consider the safety of the other passengers on other aiborne planes they prevented from landing?
ONLY IN NAIJA. TRY THAT ISH HERE IN THE UK. YOU'LL WAKE UP IN A NEW PRISON. LOL
Smh!
First off,how can an airport lightening be faulty?do these lot have any idea the kinds of danger they put innocent lives through?
And to think that the Aviation sector has suffered a lot of ugly incidents in recent past,one would expect that litle things as these don't arise.
I honestly can't blame the passengers,I can imagine their frustration...its the bloody airport authorities and security operatives I blame.
Nigeria needs a total overhauling,the system is crumbling,people are tired,an uprising is imminent.
Arik can delay.today again wђã† is their reason for keeping us here since 11am.mtchew.
Ohhhh ohhhh kayyy naaaah!Dancing Skelewu 9jaaaaaa
Lol,NIGERIANS!! Lindiway hw was ur trip,I guess smooth. Thank for journey mercies.
"important personality", nonsense, moronic people
Stupid ignorant pple. Now wats d point hijacking d run way? Somebody shuld throw a T-gas @ dem let me c who stays. Nonsense
is it not for their own good.wetin dey worry dem. THE ONLY HAUSA MAN DAT BLOGS
Only in Nigeria!
Preventing other planes from flyin doesn't solve anytn..if twas me I wud b glad the pilot turned bak, safety comes first
Good for Arik, always delaying flights am sure the was no such thing like weather nd they re just trying to cover up#didi
I am disliking Arik more and more... My brother just asked me to let us board Arik from The State back to Nig... I said never ever they should go and steal my bag or tear it at the airport.... I will sooo cry..
The pilot should have crashed landed, so atleast some of the will die...na death the hungry them...raybabz
Oohh Nigeria, these people are all fools, they all need to be arrested... so they would rather have d pilot land a plane without the runway lights? Idiots.
sounds unreasonable for passengers blocking runway and preventing other planes from landing or taking off.
Awesome. Stand up and fight for your right. Cheers. Engr Emy.
Actions speaks best
If there was a crash because of the landing in Calabar, their families would have been looking for compensation. African pple heh!.
This is a welcome development! it is high time Nigerians should learn to fight for their rights. By this action, airport authority will stop the act of holding everybody up/down because of so the so call "important person movement"
we r getting their Nigerians.....Yes i am in support of this....i remembered in early last year...i was going to Calabar from Lagos via Aero...departure time was 2pm as scheduled, but we left Lag around after 6pm....got 2 Calabar around after 7pm cos of same reason @ this airport...now tell me if Govt can spend a huge amount in order to keep Abj and Lag airports up to standard cos "they" always land and take off from those places, why cant dey do same in other airports...where is Stella Oduah and NACA? Nigerians are beginning to take d bull by the horns....no longer Ehhh..lets manage or lets keep quiet or na so e dey happen....NO...now Nigerians show how dey feel instanta..
No one can stop a nigerian wen dey wanna go gangster
I think this is not right, safety first, it is better to get there late than being late.
Too much complaint/issues associated with arik lately.....
Yesterday 14 years stoway report, today flight cancellation, tmrw delayed/diverted landing.
Is arik the only aircraft in Nigeria?
Dis is absolutely rubbish i believe dey would ve communicate wit dem at calabar dat dere is a delay in Abuja bt d plane wil takeoff n land late,their ntwrking in Nigeria is Zero n for d passengers dey should nt be upset dey can always travel d nxt day.linda post my comment pls
Imagine? Due to some Very Important Personality movement. Other people could not fly. Good thing this even happened cos Arik Air can misbehave at times just cos they are the only ones flying Abuja -Calabar. Aviation Minister fixed your Airports oh!
that's not the best way to do it....besides what may be the case could have been for their own favor.that is why I love whites
In other words, PASSENGERS ENSURE TO BOOK FOR LANDING WHILE BOOKING YOUR TICKETS!How lame.
Arik air Į̸̸̨§ a very useless airline. Why didn't other airlines Ђa̶̲̥̅̊vε̲̣̣̣̥ T̅ђє̲̣̥ same issue?Always delaying flights and giving silly excuses. Τ̅ђα† ώαƨ how M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ flight ώαƨ delayed last month Fø̲̣̣я̅ more than 5hours and ℓ ended up not making it to M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ conference. Good Fø̲̣̣я̅ them. Linda post M̶̲̥̅γ̲̣̣̥ comment ooooo!
Arik has been known for so much higi haga, and I believe the delay was because they wanted to get more passengers on board....
Nigerians and gross stupidity, as a nation we have a deformed mentality. So how does this solve the problem. And for all those illiterates that did this, i hope after this bullsh*t your problems were solved. Mtcweeeeee #foolish peeps#
My opinion is that these people should be thanking God for landing safely instead they are protesting,,if only the Dana flight passengers had this opportunity to land safely,,,please i want to enjoy my weekend cos whenever i remember the Dana aircraft passengers water runaway from my eyes!
Arik air always delay flights without letting T̅ђє̲̣̥ passengers Ђa̶̲̥̅̊vε̲̣̣̣̥ prior knowledge ahead of time.Really poor management.
The Lord would help us in this country.
In other words, PASSENGERS ENSURE TO BOOK FOR LANDING WHILE BOOKING YOUR TICKETS!How lame.
All dis one na story.carry dem go bk.simple!
Linda stop....if you feel theres a need to patronize the important personality that held other people's flight.y wouldnt the people on arik(their own too much) hold other flights.linda if u like no post my comment....
It is a pity dat at dis age and time, an airport dat had been in existence for years does not have runway light. What a shame!!!
Im with the passengers on this one its annoying abeg...Aviation ministry should get their act together.
But passengers shud know dey did it for their own safety,and Arik air on their own part shud try n improve cos d delaying of flight by dat airline has been a daily occurrence. Jst saying my mind Oooº°
Nigeria....kaii God pls come to our aid!!
Something is wrong here, why didn't they just go to a nearby state instead of flying back to abuja? Did they say there's no refund? We need more details o linda baby.
Because there was no 'lightening'?
Really Linda?? Don't you mean lighting?
Mr. Adebanji Ola; it is the airlines fault because they knew the flight was delayed due to whatever reason and they should have confirmed the situation with the airport the flight is scheduled to land before putting in the air. That's the least they could have done.
K
Dis Mumu Arik dats how dey delivered us @ Gatwick instead of heathrow having Delayed the flight from lagos by d time we arrived London heathrow was closed. Awon Oloshi. Dem never block una finish
First to comment ! Yippeeeee!!!!!!
Nigerians can be dull ehn
If u don't lyk wht passengers did thn nxt tym don't disappoint them. U made most of dem lost their appointmnt. If it is u wl u be happy? ALiLi..... I'm firstoooooo
What lawlessness!! They should all be arrested and charged with affray as well as charged to court! How can anybody in their right senses think its okay to block an international runway? If you have an issue with the airline.. you take it up with the airline.. waddaheck!
Nice one! Arik flights re always delayed coz of their incapabilty. Always claiming dat the weather is bad.
Did u say VIP movement?wot weather issue?nna mehn dis country cnt change at all.
Am so not sorry to say that this explains the depth of unfortunate state of the country. What a pity. Jibola
The situation in Nigeria is beginning to change. Citizens are brazenly asking for what rightly belongs to them.
I bet my last buck that this explanation stated here was not offered to the passengers.
Onward march to change in Nigeria
#Wearenolongerafraid!
LOL! It is Nigeria after all.
Hahaha!I can imagine d scene.
These passengers sef.
So they rather the pilot try to land the plane in poor visibility than to have a chance of flying again another day?
They should be grateful that the pilot was more concerned about their safety than to try to be brave. Kudos to the pilot and airline for not taking the chance.
This is how all those crazy drivers and motorists try to take other people's life by not being safe.
I will rather be late than be the late.
Having a 100% safety record in aviation is no small beans.
I no wan enta last chance flights.......
Lmao..naija!
Each and every passenger that took part in this should fined Becos it's wrong to block a tarmac or prevent planes from operating. What if there was a May Day call!!
If u encounter arik delays u no go blame the passengers.
I have personally witnessed an arik flight from abuja to lagos delayed for an hour because an important personnel was caught up in traffic.
For my front,dude made calls and our supposedly scheduled flight was delayed just so we could meet up
Arik = inconsistency!!!!!
@Bobo_Edo
ARIK enjoyed delay. ..why do dey now take off without communicating wit calabar airport. ...mtchewwww
Its due 2 frustratn wit life & madness sets in without u even tinkin of d consequence.Nigeria factor indeed.
Click my name 4 freebies.
Dis people are dumb oo,so dey are not hapy dey are alive
The truth of this matter is that,i was on board that arik flight yesterday n it took off by 6pm when they knw dat Calabar airport closes by 6.30 n itss a 55mins btw abj/cal. On geting towards Calabar by 6.30pm d pilot made a u turn saying d airport is closed.as if that wasn't enough with d governor of CRS wit his wife, d took us bak to abj n left us at d airport witout a word but "we r sorry" n dat was it. So d passengers anger was dat they weren't telling us anytin at 7.30pm, whr were we goin from der?whr were we going to sleep? Will d nxt day flight accommodate us?which was already full. N pple had engagements to catch up wiit in calabar.so all this prompted d action. Wot if we didn't av enough fuel to turn bak to abj? Didn't arik knw dat Calabar airport closes by 6.30pm B4 taking pple by 6pm to cal? Arik shuld sit up jorrrr! N stop putting blames
Oh puleeeeze Nigerians should smarten up better a pane not landing at its designated airport than a plane crashing .long hissssssssss
I have no words to describe aw stupid dis bunch re....they shld be happy the pilot saved them frm dying
Lol,the people are frustrated not their fault but the calabar airport should have atleast send signal instead of endangering the lifes.
Don't blame them na. If all those who died in d plane crashes were given delay as an option,they would hv taken it without blinking. Easy pls,my pple!
this can be punishable by the law... Unintelligent pple really!!
Nobody shud blame d passengers, nigerians r gud in disappointmentz xpecially wen u'v payd fully 4 d service............
Lol. My precious Nigeria. The possibilities are endless.
Mumu Nigerians ,guess for safety reasons its better. Na only niaja fit pull this kin stunt.
Tweet
Simple question, how will a flight leave Abuja to calabar without getting signal? Nigeria I wonder
They did the tight thing. Arik is fond of that. They delay flights anyhow. Before take off the pilot knew how long it would take him to get there so why take off at all. Arik should sit up.
On 2 occacion that I have to fly 2of my Personnel to Lagos for an 8:30pm flight to American, Arik Air cancelled their flight 4rm Calabar to Lagos and it cost me an additional money to upgrade their ticket to d states.......but since I started using Aero, I have no ish whatsoever to complain abt....... Arik is gud in delay and their staffs has attitude problems..........I totally disagree wit d hijacking of d run way......but agree on the over hauling of d avaition sector........plz Arik management u need to serve 9ja pple better....
Now I see why my flight was canceled yesterday from calabar to abuja, they had to Reschedule it to 8am this morning only to leave calabar @6pm. *angry*
I dnt think d main problem for d delay is d weather...he said dere was very important personality movement....so cos of vip, make pple no land again....cnt blame dem bt make dem no try block runway again ooo
ARIK NO BE AIRLINE...INTERNATIONALLY AND LOCALLY THEY ARE PIECE OF CRAP....
I was there. The passengers didn't block the runway. The blocked arik planes parked at the apron. They demonstrated because arik dumped them without any form of assistance. The flight should have left since 12:30pm but it was delayed without explanation or assistance from arik
Arik air should be familiar with calabar airport and should hav communicated with the control tower. This is poor business management by arik because they wasted aviation fuel
Lili baby,today is mi baby bday,I mean Beverly Osu
They are totally unreliable and very unapologetic. Boarded their flight (W36101) from lagos to heathrow August 13, 2013. A flight that was to leave 3.05pm didnt take off till 7.30pm. As if that wasnt bad enough. 5, 10mins to landing, pilot announced they couldnt land at heathrow and would have to land at Gatwick. It was a nasty experience. Errm did I mention I was charged abt 120k to move/amend my dates? And their agent at MM1 airport insisted I settled him for doing his job!(changing my date!). pscheeeew. On the brighter side, tu-baba was on dat same flight. very down-to-earth dude. Tuk a couple of pix with passengers....
Everything is possible in Nigeria #smh#
Who is more important than this people 2 put lives in danger 4?how will they get cash abt 25k or there abt 2 book another flight?wat would u hav done had u been on dat flight?u will react so let dem get their compensation somhow
Very Important Personality ko! They're not even ashamed to say it. Can you see how utterly useless this country is? Public sector, nonsense. Private sector too, nonsense. Do we delay payment on tickets or do they collect cash immediately? Incompetent idiots
Arik is the MOST and has got to be world's useless airline. It is my prayer that their business crumbles COMPLETELY! The fools treat you like you don't matter when your money is what is keeping them afloat. They delay flights without any concern for you and to think their fool of a manager Seun Adeleye or what is the Dick's name sef threatened to use military men to arrest us after putting us in an over booked flight. Foooooooooooooooools this Arik air
The land of the rising sun, I pray thee come forth! This lawless country hath run its course.
1. Then don't fly Arik. You get what you pay for. If Arik is known for poor service and all that everyone here is talking about, why should anyone still patronize then. Penny wise pound foolish. Pay the extra money for the more reliable airline.
2. Typical Nigerian Mentality. Since I cannot land in the airport of my choice, nobody else can move. If I cannot move forward, let nobody else progress. What kind of thinking is that? So they cannot hold the Arik counter hostage that nobody can buy tickets instead they will block the runway for other flights to not take off. Stupidity of the highest order.
3. And by the way, if the cause of non-landing is poor visibility, is that not a problem of the Port-Harcourt airport? Arik's only fault in this is that they took off late and was not able to land during the daytime. Flight delays happen all the time even in the developed countries. So giving Arik the benefit of doubt, that their flight delay was due to circumstances beyond their control, it is the Port-Harcourt Airport's fault.
4. The only thing that will save Nigeria is education. The only time it will start is when you and I, who know better, come back to Nigeria to teach everyone what they are missing and how it should be and how we can get there. If you are not ready to do your part to improve your country, please stop complaining. Grin and bear it. When you develop liver to act, then you can have the mouth to talk. Peace!
Important. Personality my foot! Who are these important peeps anyway ?when they come abroad we all Rob shoulders on the plane, train nd buses! We all line up to be served in banks, shops nd even some eatries ! But wen they get back home they put on their 3rd head. They know they are thieves nd are afraid of their own shadows!
The problem with most Nigerians are, they are quite instead of being heard, they are thankful instead of seeking explanation. More rubbish will come our way until they know we are going to take it without a fight.
For those of you commenting against this protest pls shut up.
You will soon see that they've fixed the light. In Nigeria if you don't make noise notin gets the attention it deserves so I tink they did ok.
You guys should not blame the passengers pls, if you have ever had any experience with Arik Air you will know why they are doing that. Arik always delay flight unnecessary
Uyo airport wud av bin a beta option to land rather than going back to abuja
Don't be a fool,dint u read part of VIP movts???? It wasn't 4 any safety reason,its just a silly excuse! Wah if d plane didn't av enof fuel 4 return??
U've made some good points..but ur "not so good" points outweigh d gud so dat makes ur comment less impactful (my opnion). Just for d record, Ark flights r d most expensive locally neither r dey d cheapest internationally. Ever heard d saying "experience is d best teacher"?. Obviously, som1 whoz had a bad experience with them wouldn't fly or recommend dem.....and...yes, we can tell from ur post ure probably not in d country..but dat ure abroad doesn't mean u know better dan dos who aren't. The only tn dat'l save Nigeria isn't education. What can save Nigeria is redemption! Perhaps d more appropriate word u'ld v used is enlightenment. Dat doesn't necessarily come wt education, it comes with exposure.
Typical of Arik to show extremely bad customer relations to their customers. Something similar happened to me at
Heathrow Airport in 2010 en route Lagos, where we were stranded for two nights.
There was an attempt to take off twice , after detecting engine issues and we had been kept on the runway for over one hour.
Bottom line is that the first night we were lodged in a fantastic 3 Star hotel, by the next day we were dumped in a rundown motel and we were given chips and water for a meal. I barely slept and couldn't even have my bath the next day.
NO ARIK STAFF came to pacify us,even when we blocked the check in line, no mails or calls of apology were sent to me or anyone I know!
Can u pls shut up already...who mentioned port-harcourt here...ode..why did arik take off in d first place?..wasting pples tym wit no xplanation
what rubbish more power to my people joor don't they have technology to know that something is wrong in the calabar airport and what sheer stupid they returned them back to their point of departure
Love from Miami
Shut up Mr Ola. Will responsible individuals just behave like hoodlums for no reason? Instead of apologizing u are talking rubbish. So if there were movements by "important people"is it not Ariks responsibility to alert the Calabar airport?.Zero customer service,nonsense. I would call for people to boycott arik but what other good options are there?mcheeeewwww
If u work or hav worked with an airline u will understand that all dis delay,and cancellation of flight are for safety reasons. They should be considered at times.
Na wa o ! Airport don become aboke shop wey dey close for night? Haba habatically
This action is as stupid as it is senseless. What point did they prove? NONE. Y didn't they hold d pilot to ransome up in d air and insist he land dem at Calabar. Nitwits
I can't stand ignorant people!!! Used to work for Arik, and although I don't anymore that's the only airline I will fly in Nigeria, because I have seen 1st hand if 1 bolt is out of place they are going nowhere. Doesn't matter how long they have to delay the flight, even with ignorant people more consigned with leaving on time rather than get there in 1 piece. If you don't value your lives the pilots any crew do. Or you think he just felt like flying there n back. Ignorance is a disease, these same people will say worse if he had tried to land n crashed. Exhibit your ignorance, while 'we' thank God our husbands, wives and children went to work and made it back home.
Doomed fucking country,vip movement my stinking anus !
@Anon 11:01, thank u oooo. You've said it all..... d main commentator wants to sound intelligent but unfortunately isn't making any sense afterall (I'm sorry) n den tiz Calabar n not PHC airport
Oga/Madam, first of all it is *concerned (thank me whenever). Secondly, d Arik oga said it was for VIP movt so can u pls keep ur explanations to yosev? N stop famzing
In respective of their circumstance,
taking siege of an Airport is a violation of International Aviation rules.
I hope they are arrested for putting others at risk, would they have preferred to crash.
Linda,why didn't you post the full story? so you cant say the governor was on board. He should be ashamed he cant fix his own state airport
I don't get the part where he mentioned 'very important personality movement'... So, you delay the average nigerian from struggling to make ends meet cos some dumb f**k is somewhere in the air?! They should be thankful that the passengers didn't start a fire or something. Schewwwww (˘̯˘ ).
''More consigned'', did u say you worked for arik?! Hehehe...
Unless you have been in a situation that warrants you to "go mad" at a Airline, you have no right to say a word.
I completely understand their frustrations. I was due to travel to Enugu for my wedding and because I was the Bride, I was put up with the seemingly reputable Arik.
Firstly, they messed up my boarding ticket, writing the correct day, but the wrong date. This made me have to pay about N10000 Extra to rectify their own problem.
My now husband decided to travel by road with his best man and siblings. If I tell you that they left 2 hours after I was scheduled to leave and still arrived 4 hours before I finally made it to Enugu, you will think its a joke. Imagine the bride absent for the wedding. Without an explanation, you cant plan your next course of action.
After close to 8hrs delay, the way they treated an elderly gentleman who had mobility issues was appalling, literally pulling him up the stairs while everyone watched as his trousers were almost dropping.
My sisters and friends who went with Aero Contractors had no hicups what so ever.
Now will we as a family encourage anyone to use Arik again, Never again.
Fine, what ever the reasons are for a delay, offer your PAYING customer an explanation, irrespective of class, especially if you have no workable solution. What drives people MAD is the fact they are treated worse than animals when they have paid close to double the price of other airlines.
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