Air Peace says its decision to suspend flights to Antigua was based on poor passenger demand and high operating costs, not concerns related to Ebola.

Speaking to reporters in Barbados, Air Peace Chief Commercial Officer Nowel Ngala said the Nigerian airline had originally planned a Lagos-Barbados-Antigua route but determined the Antigua leg was not economically viable after reviewing passenger bookings.

“When we look at the loads before the flight, we realized that we had just 24 passengers” travelling to Antigua, Ngala said. He added that only one passenger was booked to depart from Antigua, making it impractical to operate the service with a Boeing 777 aircraft amid high fuel prices.

Ngala stressed that the airline’s operations remain “100% safe” and noted that Nigerian authorities have implemented enhanced screening measures at airports for passengers arriving from Ebola-affected regions. He also emphasized that Air Peace does not operate flights to countries currently impacted by the outbreak.

According to the airline official, most passengers on the route originate from Ghana and Lagos, areas where no Ebola cases have been reported.

Barbados’ High Commissioner to Nigeria, Ghana and Liberia, Juliette Bynoe-Sutherland, also sought to reassure the public, noting that the Ebola outbreak is centred in East Africa, particularly the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, thousands of miles away from West Africa.

“It’s important that we not allow the historic nature of this flight, this ability to move seamlessly between Africa and the Caribbean, to be lost,” she said, while pointing to lessons learned globally during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ngala said Air Peace would continue monitoring bookings ahead of its next scheduled outbound service on the 31st and indicated the Antigua extension could return if passenger demand improves.