More than 3,000 Nigerian passengers returning from Saudi Arabia have been left without their luggage after Saudi Air failed to convey an estimated 180 tonnes of baggage from Jeddah to Nigeria.
The situation has sparked frustration among affected passengers, many of whom arrived in the country without their personal belongings after completing their journeys.
The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has intervened in the matter, with the regulator confirming the scale of the baggage backlog and engaging the airline’s management over efforts to clear it.
NCAA spokesperson, Michael Achimugu, said the regulator was aware of the complaints and was working to ensure that the affected passengers received their luggage.
“We hear your complaints, and we read your comments. Nobody is happy about this, and we are not silent,” Achimugu said in a post on X.
He disclosed that eight tonnes of stranded luggage had already been flown into Nigeria following the NCAA’s intervention last week.
“When the NCAA intervened last week, eight tons of luggage was flown in. However, considering that over three thousand passengers are affected, it means that an estimated 180 tons of passenger luggage are still stuck in Jeddah,” he said.
According to him, the NCAA had been in direct contact with the airline’s management to facilitate the return of the remaining baggage.
Achimugu said he had spent the night communicating with the airline’s country manager over the issue, despite the manager dealing with a family emergency.
“I have spent all night discussing with the country manager whose son, sadly, is undergoing surgery at the moment,” he said.
He said the regulator sympathised with the manager but stressed that the baggage crisis could not remain unresolved.
“While we empathised with him, we have been praying with him for two days over this, and I have also stressed the need to have someone else take over his duties, albeit temporarily,” Achimugu said.
The airline’s country manager subsequently referred the NCAA spokesperson to another official, identified as Omar, to continue discussions on the matter.
“He has directed me to one Omar, with whom I will be having a conversation this morning,” Achimugu said.
The NCAA said Saudi Air had assured affected passengers that they would be compensated, provided they formally submit their complaints through the airline’s designated complaints platform.
The airline has also promised to transport the outstanding luggage to Nigeria within the next few days.
Passengers seeking refunds for eligible tickets have been directed to use a separate refund platform provided by the airline.
The NCAA said Saudi Air had attributed part of the baggage disruption to operational challenges out of Kano, adding that the regulator was working with the airline to address the difficulties.
It, however, stressed that the airline remained responsible for protecting the interests of passengers.
“Saudi has been advised to take consumer protection very seriously,” Achimugu said.
As part of efforts to address the crisis, Saudi Air has appointed a new country manager to oversee its operations in Nigeria.
The new manager is expected to improve the airline’s engagement with the NCAA and strengthen communication with affected Nigerian passengers.
The aviation regulator said it would continue to engage the airline until the baggage crisis was resolved.
“Be assured that we are not sleeping on this,” Achimugu said, urging affected passengers to formally lodge their complaints with the airline.
He acknowledged that he might not be able to respond individually to all passengers raising the matter online.
“I may not be able to reply directly to EVERY tag, but you can help by reposting this until it gets to all Saudi passengers that have been affected,” he said.
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