An Air Peace flight was disrupted after a ground handler’s conveyor belt struck the aircraft while passengers were already boarded, damaging the engine cover and forcing an immediate deboarding. The incident was first shared publicly by Michael Achimugu, Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the Civil Aviation Authority.
The aircraft, one of the airline’s brand new Embraer E195-E2 jets, had been scheduled to operate nine sectors and was fully booked until January 15, 2026, leading to a ripple effect of delays and cancellations for passengers across multiple routes.
The disruption, not caused by the airline but by a ground handling error, means Air Peace will bear the operational, financial, and reputational consequences. These include refunds, compensation obligations under Part 19 of the NCAA Regulations 2023, and the high foreign exchange cost of repairs. The airline has previously disclosed that a separate bird strike incident cost over $3 million to fix and took nearly a month for replacement parts to arrive from the manufacturer.
Industry insiders told Okay News that airlines often cite “technical or operational reasons” in such cases rather than publicly blaming service providers, even when faults lie elsewhere. There are now growing calls for stricter regulation and sanctions against poorly trained ground handling personnel, as well as greater transparency to ensure passengers are properly informed.
While Air Peace reportedly has two standby aircraft, both are currently deployed for other disruptions and have lower seating capacity than the damaged E2, limiting immediate recovery options.
