By Kolawole Ojebisi
Air Peace, a Nigerian airline, has said that it will go the extra miles to ensure the safety of its vast customers even if it takes delaying and cancellation of flights.
The airline maintained that decisions informed by safety concerns, even if it caused momentary hitch, are not taken for the fun of it.
According to Air Peace, safety is the watchword of its operations and not profit, stressing that the airline has more aircraft than the authority schedules daily.
Air Peace made these claims in a statement issued on Friday night following warnings from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA)
The aviation agency had previously called on the airline to operate in accordance with its available aircraft, insinuating that the airline was operating more routes than its available aircraft.
The NCAA’s complaint came on the heels of incessant flight disruptions which have recently marked the operations of the airline.
The agency stressed that while the authority remains committed to supporting airlines, operators must adhere to regulatory standards and global best practices.
The Director General of the NCAA, Capt. Chris Najomo, also asked Air Peace to “immediately improve its domestic operations owing to complaints of chronic flight delays and cancellations by the traveling public.”
However, reacting to the highlighted observations by NCAA about its operations, Air Peace insisted that there was no time it cancelled a flight for the fun of it, adding that safety is a cardinal priority for the airline.
“At Air Peace, safety is and will always remain our cardinal priority. These delays and cancellations are dictated by safety considerations.
“We fully empathise 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,” the airline’s management added.
Air Peace also addressed the NCAA’s advice that it should cut its coat according to its cloth by saying it has more aircraft than scheduled for operations daily.
It stated, “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.”
While asserting that the reason that often leads to flight cancellations and delays is beyond the control of any airline, Air Peace emphasized that such decisions are taken in the interest of the 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,” it added.
