What Nigerian airlines must learn from recent passenger incidents

Airline dramas are far more common than most people realise, and this is true across the world, not just in Nigeria. However, the two incidents in Nigeria over the last few days have raised questions regarding airline safety, security, and professionalism in the country, along with many issues within it. The most recent incident involving […]

Airline dramas are far more common than most people realise, and this is true across the world, not just in Nigeria. However, the two incidents in Nigeria over the last few days have raised questions regarding airline safety, security, and professionalism in the country, along with many issues within it.

The most recent incident involving one Comfort Emmanson and the crew and airline security of Ibom Air has raised pertinent concerns over the conduct of both the passenger and the airline crew, both of whom can be faulted for their handling of the situation.

First, there is no justification for Ms Emmanson’s unruly conduct during the incident. Her prolonged aggression and physical attacks on members of the crew and the security personnel, both on the plane, on the tarmac, and in the bus, were not the conduct of a rational human being that one would want to be around when crammed into a metal tube travelling at 800 km/h, 30,000 feet above the ground.

While we did not see the exact trigger for her initial reaction, her subsequent violent attacks on the crew and security personnel that were documented on video warrant close scrutiny of her mental and emotional health and make the case for recommending an anger management course for her.

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In a similar vein, while officials are rushing to praise the crew’s handling of the situation, we must agree that the management of the situation was far from professional. The inhumane treatment of Ms Emmanson, the manner in which she was bundled out of the plane, the tearing of her clothes, and the shredding of her decency—beyond the damage she herself had done—are not examples of professional conduct.

Consider that this has happened before; it is the same way an unruly “Obidient” passenger was bundled out of an Ibom Air plane in 2023 in a manner that could have caused him severe injuries.

While unruly passengers sometimes have to be forcefully evicted from airplanes, there are better ways to handle this than the manner we have seen in both incidents on Ibom Air. The use of restraints such as handcuffs, and in extreme cases, shackles, is often employed to keep unruly passengers from harming themselves or others, especially the airline security or crew tasked with removing them from the plane. But to turn the narrow passageways of these small domestic shuttle airplanes into a WWE Royal Rumble arena is dangerous, unprofessional, and a recipe for lawsuits should anyone incurs injuries in the melee.

While investigations continue, the laws as stipulated in the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations, particularly Part 17, as well as the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) Bye-Laws, should be applied fairly to both the crew and the unruly passenger. I do not in any way condone Ms Emmanson’s conduct and think she should face the full extent of the law, but I also acknowledge that she might have incurred damages due to the conduct of the crew and security during the altercation.

This, however, is Nigeria, and we all know that in theory, the law may be the same for all; in practice, it is not applied using the same brush. Only the previous week, we saw the incident involving the famous singer Wasiu Ayinde Marshall, or KWAM 1, attempting to play Superman with an EasyJet private jet being handled differently. Despite Mr Marshall’s unruly behaviour, he was not tackled to the ground as Ms Emmanson was. Neither was Senator Adams Oshiomhole when he decided to hold up a flight by attempting to prevent passengers from boarding because he had missed his. (As was addressed in my column, “Power without Limits: Oshiomhole, Wike and the Politics of Disruption,” published on June 12, 2025, on this page).

Since the incident, Mr Marshall, whose six months ban from flying was commuted to a one-month ban, has now been announced by the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, as the “Aviation Security Ambassador.” It is apparently a non-paying role meant to serve as community service, the minister said, but the title sounds like something one would wear as a badge of honour. The minister also mentioned that Ms Emmanson, who was just released on bail for her actions on the plane and beyond, is being considered for a similar role.

This consideration for Ms Emmanson could only be derived from the Hausa proverb that says, “albarkacin kaza kadangare ke shan ruwan tulu.” This translates as it is on account of the favours done to the chicken that the lizard gets to drink from the water pot. The water that Ms Emmanson may drink from will be a spillover from the one poured for KWAM 1.

It is normal in any society for people of higher public standing to receive special treatment. But we must not normalise the eagerness to humiliate people who do not have such social standing because they can’t throw around the Nigerian war chant: “Do you know who I am?”

While what was seen of Ms Emmanson’s behaviour is completely condemnable, her deplaning was designed and executed in a way that was meant to completely dehumanise and shame her. Suggestions that her blouse might have been deliberately shredded and her bosom exposed to malicious shame may be speculative, but not without grounds. But how is it that airlines in Nigeria, particularly one that has had a very similar incident only two years ago, have not developed a protocol for restraining unruly passengers before evicting them in a manner that will not cause such drama and condemnation? If what happened with the “Obidient” passenger in 2023 was a wake-up call, why hasn’t the airline woken up yet?

We are meant to learn from certain experiences, and if two years after the “Obidients are here!” deplaning fiasco we are still deplaning passengers in the manner Ms Emmanson was deplaned, it shows a complete lack of growth and development and raises greater concern for passenger safety.

What it means simply is that we are taking passenger safety in the event of an unruly passenger for granted and simply rolling the dice and seeing how it goes. This is a huge mistake. Air travel is the safest mode of transport in the world because it presents greater risks that necessitate greater safety measures.

Today, people around the world travelling by air are often required to take off their shoes to be scanned as a response to the actions of Richard Reid, the shoe bomber, way back in 2001.

Airlines are supposed to adapt to challenges like this and develop protocols that will keep not only the aircraft safe, but also the passengers, crew, and security operatives who will have to grapple with the likes of Ms Emmanson and their flailing arms.

While lambasting unruly passengers, the conduct of the crew and staff must also be reviewed. We all know that airlines in Nigeria have entrenched the attitude of treating passengers with complete disregard. Passengers’ needs are often ignored, and they are frequently treated poorly when flights are delayed or cancelled, often without notice and mostly with no compensation. Complaints are often dismissed. While a good number of air crews are polite and professional in their dealings with passengers, many are often rude and brusque.

The recent incident must not be brushed aside with a swathe of “ambassadorial” titles dished out to unruly passengers, which in truth seems like rewarding bad behaviour, but must be followed by definitive measures to redesign deplaning protocols in the country and ensure safety on our airlines.

Airline crews must also be trained in professional conduct and sanctioned in instances where their behaviour aggravates passengers or goes against the ethics of their profession. What the incidents of these last few weeks have exposed, beyond the obvious, is that there are serious breaches on the part of both passengers and airline operators and crews. Both sides need to be addressed to protect each other from the harm they could all cause.