By Mazi Ogbonnaya Okoro
I don’t know what led me to book Max Air from Abuja to Lagos.
I will share my experience…
I had flown Air Peace from Lagos to Enugwu, and from Enugwu to Abuja without stress. I was shocked that anytime I board Airpeace, I never experienced any wahala. Maybe I am fortunate with them.
I think I know the secret — first morning flight. Those 6:45 AM flight. The only delay I had was less than 10 minutes from Enugwu to Abuja and they constantly apologized. I love the fleets of aircraft Airpeace use— new, neat and beautiful. Their take off and landing are always smooth.
Then, I decided to revisit Lagos again as I would be flying KLM the following day to Amsterdam, Netherlands. The Airpeace flight I saw was night. Other flights by the time I was booking were almost night. I said ok, let me go for Max Air, since it had 5:30 PM flight. Let me have a new experience with a different airline.
If not that I would be heading to Amsterdam the following day, I wouldn’t have bothered. So, I felt that I didn’t want any form of disappoint.
I got an email from Max Air that the flight was rescheduled to 7:20 PM. I was boiling in anger. The night I was avoiding, I later met it.
I was still trying to assimilate the shock, I got another email that the flight has been rescheduled to 10:45 PM.
Mazi Ogbonnaya Okoro
I wasn’t getting it. I called the numbers, switched off. I sent email, it’s over a week, nobody replied me till now. I sent text, no response. At least, I wanted to be sure.
If not because of my international travel to Amsterdam the next day, I wouldn’t mind ignoring them. But if I miss that flight, o tilo.
I know that Bongo is a lawless nation, and nobody is accountable for anything. Not even government or private companies. How can you run a business without picking calls? No email? No text message? The communication zero.
As a trained and experienced communication specialist for an organization, I can say that any organization or business without proper communication is self-destructive.
I left my guys and headed to airport in the evening. It could be that the 10:45 PM was a mistake. I had to confirm at the airport since nobody was picking my calls or replying to my texts. In fact, all their customer care lines were switched off.
Since there was still time, I used “along” as usual, paid for two space in the front. I noticed two fat ladies sitting behind. They were begging me to come back and stay with them so that the spaces I paid for the front will cover up the two spaces behind. I am slimmer, two additional fat people may come and inconvenience them. They were looking for who to press like bread. They wanted to squeeze son of man— Chief Ọnụkwube. You didn’t see me please. Ụnụ ahụghị m.
Immediately one person entered there, I told the driver to move, I would pay for the empty seat at the back so that the ladies would be comfortable. They were happy, likewise myself.
As we got to Berger, the driver who was happy and excited to drive me as I used stories to finish him, singlehandedly got me a driver who drove me to the airport. We were chatting and vibing to the airport. He’s an Igbo brother. He asked me:
“Nwanne, why Max Air nah? If you leave Abuja by 10:45 PM, kelee Chukwu… You should have use Blu Jet or Ibom Air. I know that Airpeace misbehaves sometimes but they are better. Max Air is for all these northern States.”
He told me a lot and I learned from him.
I got to the airport and met the lady at a ticketing office. I was complaining about their communication system. She wasn’t even listening to me. She just gave me my ticket, nothing like apology.
This was a sign of useless airline.
I was to stay extra 5 hours at the airport waiting for 10:45.
I was walking about the airport premises where someone screamed my name. He’s a brother, from my village. He now works with United Nigeria Airline. We have never met for more than a decade. He screamed over and over. Their last aircraft had just taken off to Port Harcourt, and he closed for the day; buying fruit for his wife when he sighted me from afar.
That was how he stayed with me for almost 5 hours. We gist, spoke about many things. He reminded me when I used to visit Obosi— Pacific Publishers Limited about 13 years ago. He was living in Obosi then. I think that was the last time we met Men don hustle oo.
Let me not digress…
10:45 PM, there was no aircraft. Ndị ara Max Air announced:
“The aircraft….will be taken off to Lagos in one hour time. ”
That’s 11:45 PM.
Everyone was angry. It was right there I heard some people didn’t fly the previous day. They slept at the airport, and it seemed the same fate was knocking again. In fact, they didn’t even receive any postponement email or text. They said I was lucky to have received an email. Some of them were at the airport 3:00 PM against 5:30 PM departure time.
At this point, I was telling myself, “you don fuckk up.”
Where I seated, a lady was also sitting beside me. None of us were talking to each other. Who get time?
After some minutes, she said to me:
“You no dey talk to person? You no even say make you say Hi.”
I laughed and replied: “the one I go say hi, you go say I want chyke you. Make all man dey their dey.”
She say I dey craze …
We both burst into laughter. That was how I made a new friend and gist partner. We were both laughing at ourselves. She’s from Adamawa. A very jovial and fine asampetecious asampete. She didn’t even get any email or text about rescheduling of the flight.
Let me not digress..
I already knew there was a fucck up. I began to book Ibom Air— the morning flight. It was around 200k or so. I don’t mind. No story. But I placed it on reservation.
11:45 PM, no flight. All the staff of Max Air disappeared. That was when I realized I have entered one chance. Abanyego m akpa ndị ohi.
The next thing we heard was that the aircraft scheduled to fly us had returned to Lagos from Kano. In fact, it was loading in Lagos before it would get to Abuja.
12:00 AM the following day, no aircraft. Some passengers said they were going to protest. They came to me to join them in protest. I was just laughing at them. Protest to who? The staff who had disappeared like onye nyụrụ ahụ isi? Who exactly?
If not for my movement that day to Amsterdam, I would see the end. We storytellers weave our stories by practical experience.
Some minutes after 12:00 AM, the flight arrived. People were scared that number of people traveling the previous day who didn’t go would join us. Maybe, they had collected more than the aircraft would take. They were rushing the line. Some might likely stand like molue to Lagos. Anything is possible in Bongo.
This is Bongo. No gentleman. No dulling. As a sharp guy, m kwụnye na line in the front. A little second, the line stretched from Calabar to Sokoto.
When we boarded the aircraft, there was no AC. Everyone was sweating like mkpị ṅụrụ ara ọkụ. They used the safey manual placed in front of their seats to fan breeze to themselves.
I was laughing and shouting: “Bongo na Bongo!”
I called on a sweating air hostess and asked her:
“You guys don’t have AC in this aircraft?”
She said they have. “Why did you turn it off?”
She left me. We were still sweating. Are they saving the AC or what?
If I had taken night bus, GU Okeke, or God Bless Ezenwata from Utako or Gwagwalada, I would have been happier. At least, I would be receiving good AC and interacting with living things. If there’s no AC, I would open window to receive flesh breeze with cool night atmosphere. But, it seems that suffer no dey tire these people who were fanning themselves inside airplane.
It seems I was the only one complaining. Then, I was in Rome, I had to act a Roman. I began to fan myself too, laughing, and telling myself “ntọọọ!”
As they were making announcement, passengers were shouting: “shut up!”
Even safety announcement like fastening of seat belt and emergency safety were greeted with “shut up!”
When we were about to take off, the AC suddenly began to work. By then, we were all wet like a chicken drenched by rain.
We would land Murtala Muhammed Airport and by the time people began to claim their luggage, it was already 2:00 AM.
I said to myself: “Never again!”
No apology for their delay. No single apologies for their incompetence and non-challant attitudes.
I promised to drop my review and experience. Here you have it!
I paused!
