The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority sanctioned Qatar Airways to the sum of five million naira on 19 November 2025 over consumer protection-related infractions, the regulator's Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, Michael Achimugu, announced. Achimugu said outstanding letters of investigation sent to the airline over other unresolved cases could lead to further sanctions if they were not addressed satisfactorily.
A Passenger's Ordeal in Doha
The fine followed a warning the NCAA had issued in September 2025 after a Qatar Airways cabin crew member accused a Nigerian passenger of sexual harassment during boarding in Lagos for a flight to the United States via Doha. According to the NCAA, the allegation was reported only once the passenger reached Doha, where he was arrested, held for eighteen hours, fined and made to sign a document written entirely in Arabic, before the airline declined to continue his journey and he was forced to buy another ticket. The regulator said it had invited Qatar Airways' country manager to discuss the case but he did not attend, sending subordinates in his place.
The sanction came amid a broader enforcement drive that saw the NCAA fine or warn several international carriers, including Kenya Airways and Royal Air Maroc, over passenger treatment during 2025, part of a wider effort by the authority to assert Part 19 consumer protection rules against both domestic and foreign airlines operating in Nigeria.
