Court orders Dana Air to pay passenger N5.5 million over 11-hour flight delay

A Lagos-based Federal High Court has ordered Dana Airlines Limited to pay a passenger N5.5 million in damages and legal costs. The airline's failure to justify an 11-hour delay of a domestic flight led to the ruling.

Justice Yellim Bogoro stated on May 25 that Dana Air breached its contract of carriage by failing to transport Babajide Idowu from Abuja to Lagos on Flight 9J-356 on July 5, 2018. The court awarded Mr. Idowu N5 million in general damages and N500,000 for solicitor’s fees.

“

The defendant never denied that there was delay but has tried justifying the delay within the ambit of the permissible protocols for delay.

Mr. Idowu filed the lawsuit in November 2019, arguing that Dana Air repeatedly postponed the flight, leaving him and approximately 70 other passengers stranded at the Abuja airport for about 11 hours without a clear explanation. He sought compensation under Nigeria's Civil Aviation Act, which incorporates the Montreal Convention, for the breach of contract, psychological trauma, and legal costs.

During the trial, Mr. Idowu testified that passengers received no reason for the postponements until months later, after his lawyer's correspondence with the airline. Dana Air denied liability, claiming the delay stemmed from safety advice issued by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). However, the court was not persuaded, noting the airline failed to produce documentary evidence to support its defense or demonstrate reasonable steps taken to avoid the delay. The judge emphasized that the burden of proof rested on the airline.

“

I have not found where the reason for the delay was communicated to the plaintiff.