Nigeria’s major carrier, Air Peace, has reacted to the advice by the Directed General of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr Chris Najomo, urging the airline to reduce its operations to fit the number of aircraft in its fleet to eliminate flight delays and cancellations, saying that such disruptions are prompted by safety concerns.
The airline said safety is and will always remain its cardinal priority, noting that the delays and cancellations raised by NCAA are dictated by safety considerations.
The airline was responding to the statement issued earlier by NCAA, where the Director General of NCAA, Captain Chris Najomo, has advised Nigeria’s major carrier, Air Peace, to reduce the destinations it flies to be in tandem with the number of aircraft in its fleet, as a way of reducing flight delays and cancellations.
Najomo gave the advice when it held a meeting with the airline over complaints about the airline’s flight delays and urged it to immediately improve its domestic operations.
The Director General who warned that NCAA would increase its monitoring of flight operations of all the airlines, assured that it would continue to support them, but they must comply with the regulations and global best practices.
In the statement signed by the Air Peace management, the airline said, “The attention of Air Peace has been drawn to a statement allegedly released by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, calling on the airline to ‘improve its domestic operations’ due to alleged chronic delays and cancellations.
“As a proud Nigerian airline, we deeply appreciate the NCAA’s consistent efforts in ensuring that all airlines operating within the country, including Air Peace, adhere strictly to global safety standards and regulatory compliance. While we hold the NCAA in the highest regard as the regulatory authority overseeing aviation in Nigeria, we believe it is essential to set the record straight.
“At Air Peace, safety is and will always remain our cardinal priority. These delays and cancellations are dictated by safety considerations. We fully empathize with our esteemed passengers who experience discomfort, inconvenience, or disrupted plans due to flight delays or cancellations. However, we do not regret taking operational decisions rooted in the protection of human lives and in strict adherence to safety standards. If weather conditions, technical parameters, or operational standards fall short of what is safe, we will not operate that flight.”
Air Peace further explained that the number of aircraft it has can efficiently operate all its domestic routes, not that it has more aircraft available that are not even rostered to operate.
“It is also important to clarify a key statement allegedly credited to the NCAA, that Air Peace should reduce the size of its operations to align with available aircraft. While we understand the spirit of that recommendation, we must clearly state that Air Peace has more aircraft available than are currently rostered for daily operations. Therefore, any delays or cancellations we’ve experienced have absolutely nothing to do with fleet shortage,” the airline said.
It further noted, “For instance, today (May 2, 2025), one of our aircraft experienced a bird strike, which damaged the engine while landing in Enugu. The aircraft was immediately grounded and withdrawn from operation in accordance with safety protocol. This aircraft had been scheduled to service multiple routes today, and its unavailability has had a direct ripple effect on operations for those routes. This kind of situation is completely beyond the control of any airline, but again, our priority is the safety of our passengers.
“It is to be stated that every decision Air Peace has taken since the inception of this airline, whether resulting in a delay, cancellation, or suspension of flight, has been taken in the best interest of safety. And if such situations occur again, we will do the same because we are not ready to compromise safety. We do not cancel any flight for the fun of it. It is not our policy to delay or cancel flights without due cause, and when we do, we are often the greater loser financially. We will never sacrifice safety for convenience, comfort, speed, or profit.”
Air Peace further apologised to its customers and pledged that it would remain focused on serving them with dignity, professionalism, and above all, unwavering adherence to safety standards.
