Air Peace has explained that it couldn’t delay flight in favour of the Emir of Kano, Alhaji Aminu Ado Bayero, as his camp requested, considering the fact that people were already fully boarded and the aircraft was in motion.
Following a petition to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), in which a punitive punishment was sought against Air Peace, the airline said it didn’t disrespect the monarch as his cousin Prince Bayero had claimed, adding that as a matter of fact, the Emir’s reputation was protected.
In a statement cited by BizWatch Nigeria, the Chief Operating Officer (COO), Air Peace, Toyin Olajide described the allegation that the airline disrespected the Emir as a falsehood
Her words: “Rather than disrespect the revered Emir of Kano, Air Peace did everything to protect the name and image of the Emir from ridicule by not succumbing to what Isa Bayero wanted us to do.
“If we had agreed to stop and delay an aircraft, already set to take-off, for another one hour only for the doors to be opened and the Emir to walk in, there would have been a very serious uproar in the media nationwide against both the airline and the Emir. This we pleaded with Isa Bayero to understand but he refused to accept.
“How could Isa Bayero want the Management of Air Peace to stop and delay a fully boarded plane with doors already shut and aircraft already moving while our respected Emir and eight others in his entourage, including Isa Bayero, were still at the international wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos after arriving from Banjul?”
The COO explained that from the telephone log evidence on the phone of the Chairman/CEO, Allen Onyema, Isa Bayero, called at about 5.52am, at a time he was still sleeping.
She said from the same log, it could be seen that he called him again at 5.59am which obviously woke him up.
“On seeing that it was Isa Bayero calling, he took the call. Isa told our Chairman that he and the Emir of Kano had just landed the Murtala Mohammed International Airport Lagos from Banjul, Gambia and would be proceeding to Kano same morning.
“He told the Chairman to delay our first flight of the day, the 6:15 am Lagos-Kano flight for him and the Emir with another eight persons. It was not true that our Chairman refused flatly. He rather told Mr. Isa Bayero to give him a few minutes to call the airport to find out the status of the flight. I was the one he called. To show his desire to help, he called me immediately and intimated me with the request.
“I am the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Air Peace. I quickly called the local airport from where we carry on our day-to-day domestic flight operations and was told that the aircraft had since finished boarding and was almost taxiing out,” the COO added.
