By Kehinde Toyin
Days after the clash between a female passenger, Comfort Emmanson, and Ibom Air crew members, the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has ordered that all mobile phones must be completely switched off during flight take-off and landing.
The row between Emmanson was caused over her earlier refusal to switch off her phone. She had earlier put it on flight mode, but the air hostess insisted that she must switch it off. NCAA has now ordered that, henceforth, all phones must be switched off during plane take-off and landing in Nigeria.
In an X post on Tuesday, Michael Achimugu, the NCAA’s director of public affairs and consumer protection, said the regulation concerning phones and other electronic devices in Nigeria has now been unified. He announced this amid the agency’s emergency meeting with stakeholders on Tuesday.
Achimugu wrote: “ALL PHONES MUST BE SWITCHED OFF DURING THE CRITICAL ASPECTS OF TAKE OFF AND LANDING. All airlines must amend their security programmes to reflect this if different in their current programmes. No more airplane mode until regulations are reviewed to reflect evolving technological situations.”
