The Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) has urged the Federal Government to step up security at the country’s airports and ensure that airline employees’ lives and property are protected in accordance with the law.
Abdulmunaf Sarina, the president of the AON, made the demand in a statement on Friday while denouncing the attack on some Max Air employees in Abuja.
He bemoaned the fact that some rowdy customers assaulted aviation workers as a result of a flight delay, as well as destroying some of the airline’s property.
This, according to Sarina, has increased the union’s concern and alarm about the deteriorating level of security and the growing threat to airline employees’ lives and property at airports.
He described the airport area as a delicate and sacred space where individuals should not be permitted to act in an unrestrained and heartless manner.
According to AON scribe, allowing passengers access to sensitive restricted areas of the airport and attacking airline staff or preventing a plane from departing to other destinations because a specific flight has been delayed or canceled reflects poorly on the country in the international community.
He emphasized that concerns of delay or cancellation may be dealt with civilly rather than violently.
Sarina feels that the rowdy customers who attacked Max Air and wrecked its computer reservation systems have aggravated the problem for other passengers flying to different destinations.
He stated that AON understands passengers’ frustrations when a flight is delayed or cancelled, and that the company apologized to passengers on behalf of airlines.
However, according to the AON president, delays occur all over the world and are caused by a variety of factors.
He cautioned that if a situation similar to that of Max Air arose again, the union would be compelled to reconsider how it would respond.