Flights at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos state were grounded on Monday as staff members of the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company Plc (NAHCO) embarked on an industrial action over salary increment.
Passengers at the airport are stranded and frustrated as moved around the premises. Many of the passengers protested over the situation.
As a result, Qatar Airways made a return to Doha, while other airlines dropped passengers without workers to handle the clearance.
An affected passenger and aviation expert, Alex Nuba said that NAHCO staff walked out of the international airport in the early hours of Monday, saying they were on strike and would not handle any passengers.
“Even the Qatar flight I’m traveling with this morning landed and has returned to Doha as there’s no one to handle them”, Nwuba said.
He said passengers are frustrated as they have been kept outside to avoid a crisis and no information, announcements, or emails was sent to passengers.
The Chief Executive Officer of Money Africa, Mr Oluwatosin Oladeinde wrote on Twitter: “Airlines ground handlers on strike at Lagos Airport. No departure check-in and no arrival of flights for now departing passengers stranded”.
NAHCO handles check-in, boarding, and ramp services for several international airlines including Air France/KLM, Qatar, Ethiopian Airlines, Delta Airlines, Virgin Atlantic, and Turkish Air.
Travelers say if the situation is not addressed, more flights would be grounded.
Meanwhile, NAHCO source said that management met with the staff on Sunday over the strike and assured that the situation would be addressed soon.
