Some passengers of Med-View Airlines yesterday heaved a sigh of relief in Lagos as the operator finally returned the last batch of luggage left behind in London.
The luggage, The Guardian learnt, came into the country on Monday after two weeks of tension and face-off between the aggrieved passengers and officials of the airline.
The airline said the development was due to “operational issues” and delay in the screening of luggage at Gatwick Airport, United Kingdom (UK), with assurance that the valuables would arrive last Tuesday, but did not.
Some of the passengers were seen retrieving their luggage yesterday.One of them, Blessing, said: “Thank God. Finally. Christmas is over, but we still thank God. It is painful, but God knows best.”
The airline implored other passengers who are yet to collect their baggage to do so by visiting D wing arrival of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.
Spokesperson of Med-View, Obuke Oyibotha, said the delivery of the left-over baggage was hampered by the intermittent closure of the long runway at Gatwick Airport and the Christmas holidays, forcing the airline to enter into agreement with British Airways (BA), which delivered them.
Also, the Chief Executive Officer of Med-View, Muneer Bankole, said the airline’s and passengers’ ordeal over the left-over baggage was over.He thanked the affected passengers for their understanding, saying the situation was beyond the control of the airline.“But as a responsible airline, it is our obligation to deliver the baggage to all the passengers who flew with us,” Bankole said.