Lufthansa diverts flight to Cotonou, Malabo and leaves 200 Nigerian passengers stranded

The pilot of Lufthansa flight LH566 from Frankfurt to Lagos’ Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, diverted the flight to Cotonou, Togo, and then to Malabo, Equatorial Guinea’s capital, on Friday.

The pilot had informed the more than 200 passengers on board that the Lagos airport had been closed.

According to sources, 15 Malabo-bound passengers were scheduled to arrive in Lagos by 5:45 p.m. on March 3 before flying to the capital of Equatorial Guinea.

However, the flight arrived in Lagos at 2 a.m. on March 4. Also findings revealed that the Lagos airport was never closed on March 3.

“We left Frankfurt on March 2 at 12 noon to Lagos and Malabo in Equatorial Guinea,” said one of the passengers, who preferred to remain anonymous.

“This flight was scheduled to arrive in Lagos at 5.45 p.m. When we arrived in Lagos, the pilot informed us that the Lagos airport was closed. He flew us to Contonou airport and waited for Lagos airport to open. We stayed for nearly three hours.

During this time, relatives who were waiting for the flight were terrified. Individuals were now calling relatives to inquire what was going on at the Lagos airport.

It was then we realised that Lagos airport was not closed. We then requested that the pilot take us to Lagos. After much argument, the pilot told us he was taking us to Malabo, to drop the 15 passengers before coming back to Lagos to drop over 200 passengers.

This is exactly what the pilot did. We arrived at 2 a.m. When we said we wouldn’t land in Lagos unless the airline made proper arrangements for us, the pilot threatened us and said he would call the police to evacuate us”, a passenger narrated.

The Lufthansa memo

In response to the development, Lufthansa management issued a notice to Lagos-bound passengers.

“Dear Lufthansa guest, unfortunately, your flight LH569/3 March from Lagos to Frankfurt is delayed due to operational reasons,” according to the March 3, 2023 circular.

“The incoming aircraft has been diverted and to land in Cotonou (Benin) and then to Malabo (Equatorial Guinea) before reaching Lagos destination.

Lufthansa would like to sincerely apologize for this delay and any inconvenience it may have caused you on your journey.

We have now scheduled the aircraft to arrive in Lagos around 01:15 (it arrived at 2 a.m.), and we will do our best to manage a quick turnaround.”

Meanwhile, Mrs. Faithful Hope-Ivbaze, General Manager, Public Affairs, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), responded quickly: “There was never a day/time when MMA was closed. I’ll let you know if there is any resolution in the coming days.”