Arik Air apologizes to Banky W, others over March 31 incident

The management of Arik Air has tendered an
apology to passengers of the unfortunate
incident that occurred on March 31, 2014,
where the air conditioning system of their
aircraft stopped working for some minutes,
which caused a mini protest by passengers.
In a statement made available to
Nigeriafilms.com by the airline, it was stated the
management of Arik regrets the ugly scenario
and tendered its unconditional apology.
Below is the full statement;
“To all guest who travelled on flight W3107 (from
Lagos, Nigeria to JFK, New York) on 31st March
2014, Arik Air offers an unconditional apology,
for the inconvenience and discomfort caused by
both the 55 minute delayed flight departure and
the failure of the airplane’s air-conditioning
system prior to said departure.
“In this regard, the experienced schedule delay
was a result of complications related to the
cargo loading process as managed by Arik Air’s
contracted ground-handling agent.
Unfortunately, whilst efforts were rightly being
expended to overcome the cargo loading
difficulties, the backup air conditioning unit
(which should have been provided by our
ground handling agent) was declared
unserviceable and thus unavailable for use.
Upon resolution of the cargo loading difficulties,
the air-conditioning system was finally restored
as the aircraft prepared for immediate
departure under its own engine power.
“Arik Air, and its Management, acknowledges
that the handling of the situation on board was
less than satisfactory and falls well short of the
high standards of service that its esteemed
travelling guests have come to expect of us (and
which we demand of ourselves). Arik Air’s
Management wishes to assure our esteemed
guests that the necessary remedial measures
have been initiated to prevent the repetition of
such an incident to the extent possible/
controllable.
“Arik Air is committed to providing a safe and
comfortable air transport service to every guest
and on every journey. Arik Air wishes to thank
all guests who endured this inconvenience
patiently, despite both the trying circumstance
and the unfortunate exhibition of aggression, to
both people and property, by a minority of
unruly passengers onboard the aircraft.
“Arik Air values, greatly, its relationship with her
guest. Hence, to all the affected guests, please
note that we intend to pursue the restoration of
the trust and faith vested in us by your good-
selves. In this respect, Arik Air shall be
contacting each affected guest on flight W3107
31st March 2014, to express these sentiments
(and seek such restitution of trust) individually.
“Once again, please accept our humble and
sincere apologies. You and your patronage are
dear to us. We exist to serve you and we look
forward to doing so again in the near future.”