Medview leaves Nigerian passengers stranded in Lagos and Gatwick with many spending Xmas at the airport

PASSENGERS travelling in and out of Nigeria for the Christmas holidays aboard domestic carrier Medview Airlines have been left stranded for days at airports as the airline has been overwhelmed by demand and unable to cope with demand.

Nigeria's only airline currently flying globally, Medview flies into the UK's Gatwick Airport and also plies several other international routes. However, hundreds of passengers trying to get home to Nigeria for Christmas have been stranded at Gatwick Airport for up to five days, with about 800 of them abandoned in the UK since December 22.

with Nigerian airline Med-View have not been able to leave the UK since December 22.

Many told how they felt abandoned by the airline over the festive period and that some had missed Christmas with their families.  Medview was forced to ground flights due to what it described as ongoing technical problems and Gatwick Airport has apologised on behalf of the airline.

In addition, about 700 passengers travelling to Dubai and London have been left stranded at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos. Many of them spent their Christmas at the airport and yesterday, unable to bear it any longer, some of the passengers protested violently against the airline's staff.

Yesterday morning, the aggrieved passengers marched to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) Consumer Protection Directorate to complain about the failure of the airline to airlift them to their destinations as scheduled. Some of them said they ought to have flown out of the country to their destinations since December 24 but have been stranded without any concrete travel plans and no talk of compensation.

Medview's management explained that the reason for its delayed flight out of London, Gatwick, was due to the fact that it had to deal with an Aircraft on Ground situation compounded by the holidays and other uncomplimentary factors that have made the situation linger. Michael Ajigbotosho, Medview's chief operating officer, said the airline’s aircraft had to embark on an air return as part of safety measures.

He also stated that the airline had got approval for the use of three aircrafts to airlift at least 700 passengers from the UK. However, he added that the unruly behaviour of some passengers made Border Force officials to wade in and eventually only two of the flights could leave London.

Mr Ajigbotosho said: “Our flight VL 2101 out of London to Lagos on December 22 which has about 300 passengers on board returned back to Gatwick after departure as a precautionary measure taken by the pilot-in-command in line with Aviation Standard and Recommended Practices. This led to the cancellation of the flight as the aircraft was declared Aircraft On Ground (AOG).

"The passengers were catered for, they were lodged in a hotel and those who decided to go back home were also taken care of. After the aircraft was declared AOG, we had to wait for a maintenance report as the aircraft had to remain on ground until a certified expert carried out the necessary checks and certify that the aircraft is airworthy."

Medview appealed to its Nigerian customers, expressing appreciation for their patronage and apologised for the experience they went through this Christmas. It added that the holidays compounded its problems.