Last Friday, allegations started to emerge that Antigua Airways was suspected of defrauding customers.
Antigua Airways denies such allegations and says they are working hard to improve customer service.
“Customers whose tickets had been deemed “null and void” will be honored by the airline pending payment for the upcoming flight”, said Opeyemi Olorunfemi, Antigua Airways Managing Director.
He explained on Friday that issuing refunds was simply out of their control because Stripe, the credit card processing company, halted customer payments from being released to the airline’s bank account due to the high risk of the transactions.
Emails between Antigua Airways and Stripe confirmed the airlines’ claims and that customers would be issued a refund.
Mr. Olorunfemi explained, “It is likely someone used a stolen credit card to purchase a flight, which triggered Stripe to withhold our funds and block future transactions.”
He continues, “Customers are receiving refunds, it’s simply a matter of time for all of the refunds to go through.”
According to Stripe, once the refund is issued it can take up to 15 days to show up in the customer’s bank account.
However, given the flight was just two weeks away, the airline’s best course of action was to ask customers to make a new payment directly to their bank account and explained it’s located in Canada because Nigeria’s Central Bank set restrictions on foreign exchange limiting withdrawals/spending in USD to $4000 per month.
“The bank transfers are just a temporary solution for customers paying in USD, otherwise customers can pay at our office in Abuja.”
The airline is currently working to secure another online payment method given the recent events with Stripe.
With Christmas and New Years approaching, Antigua Airways is expecting the flight on December 23rd to be full and have added an additional flight on December 26th.
Direct flights from Nigeria to the Caribbean are an exciting development for many Nigerians who wish to travel abroad for the holidays, as all other airlines with flight routes from Nigeria to the Caribbean pass through Europe, the U.S. or Canada and require Nigerians to obtain a visa, which, because of strict immigration policies, is nearly impossible for most Nigerians to acquire.
Last year, the UK instituted a policy that Nigerian passport holders are required to acquire a transit visa simply to pass through their airport.
Sounds simple enough, however, in order to qualify for a UK transit visa one must hold a visa to their final destination.
Given several Caribbean countries are visa free for Nigerians, these governments have no reason to issue such a visa.
Thus, before Antigua Airways launched last month, Nigerians were essentially blocked from traveling to the Caribbean. While Antigua Airways’ upcoming holiday flights will be chartered by Euroatlantic Airways, the airline aspires to become a commercial airline, which would create a tremendous opportunity for tourism in Antigua and Barbuda, and the other Caribbean nations open to Nigerian tourists.
“Antigua Airways provides an important service not only for Nigerians but also for their foreign spouses who wish to plan a holiday in the Caribbean” said Carolina Hathorn, who is a U.S. citizen married to a Nigerian.
She reports that there are thousands of U.S. citizens like her who, because of U.S. immigration laws, wait years for their spouse’s visa to be approved and are looking to Antigua Airways to make it possible for couples to spend the holidays together in the Caribbean.
As a customer, Hathorn continues, “I’m grateful for Antigua Airway’s initiative and their recent improvements in customer service.”
Antigua Airways also took this opportunity to clarify that https://antiguaairways.com/
is the official website and, while they own https://antiguaairways.net/, it will be taken down, to avoid further confusion.
Customers interested in the flight on Dec 26 can visit their website or instagram https://www.instagram.com/antiguaairwaysofficial/ for more information.
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“High risk of the transactions?”
Notes From A Native Son Of The Rock! “The Afrocentric paradigm is a construtural adjustment to Black dislocation, disorientation, decenteredness and lack of Agency.” – Dr Molefi Asante, Afrocentric ity, The Theory of Social Change!
Seize The Time, Space, Challenges and Opportunities!
“Leave this Eurocentric and blind followship behind!
Be Bold! Learn from your mistakes and Chart a New Path for Global and Regional Travel!
That Antigua Airways is fraught with risks as any new endeavour is without question! Use all the skilled resources in Antigua and Barbuda to do the risk analysis and develop mitigation strategies!
Nuff Said!
@John French ll: Good to see you are back.I see you had no quotes from Franz Fanon in your comments. Hope all is well with you.
Gaston Browne and the ABLP was warned time and time again about this airline tie-up with Nigeria 🇳🇬, but this damn stubborn Prime Minister still went ahead – Antiguans deserve so much better than this.
ELECTION TIME HE GONE!
I don’t like this one bit. We’re already a melting pot for our Caribbean brothers and sisters and they want to drop off a flight full of non returning immigrants?
Stop the sh$t.
Are we not Africans? Why the discrimination.
It’s not discrimination at all, and you shouldn’t see it as that @ Princewill.
Our Prime Minister has a history of jumping into the financial quagmire without doing due diligence and then Antiguans find that weeks, months or years, that Gaston Browne has caused more economical damage to the country. Simple really boss!
*later
Buyer Beware. Another plane load of scam artists is about to touch down!
So this credit-card company, Stripe, is locking down refunds because of ONE dubious transaction? Really?
And having NOT received their US$3,000+ refund, customers are expected to pay a SECOND time for their flight? Really, Antigua Airways?
This reminds me of the half-billion-dollar bond that’s listed in our debt stock but the Administration claims it didn’t receive ….
The best excuse the PM could give when asked about the none returning Nigerians is that- do you ask these questions about the white Europeans that come here and don’t go back. Like two wrong can make a right. Secondly it will not just be a few st s time but scores. Are we prepared fir the influx of people at this time? Is our health system prepared for an influx. During the Monserrat volcanic eruption the British government gave grant to build Poly clinics to cushion the burden off our health system.
The other point is that of our immigration laws being wantonly broken , disregarded and encouraged by our leaders. So where is the chief immigration officer on this border security issue? You are hearing about fraud with credit card. We already flooded with call and emails from these African countries trying to defraud us ,so don’t tell me they care about any black brother, criminals don’t care about color.
I guess that the economic power house of the Caribbean is strong enough to cushion. Hey I didn’t mind a well planned, well put together airline , bringing people that can add value to our economic and respecting our immigration laws and policies.
So the nonsense that is being done will only add to the disaster of flight # 1.
” … where is the chief immigration officer on this border security issue?
If you are talking about Ms Yearwood, we’ve got no chance. This officer always goes into hiding and never addresses our concerns @ Frankly Speaking …
Well well well .. look at this.
How many airlines have come to Antigua and have lasted . With no problems and fraud..
the minute we heard about African Nigerian fraud Antiguan airways we alll said this was fraud .. Gaston pocketed money to do money laundering with this airlines and it’s falling apart..
We are not surprised..ANTIGUA Please open your eyes .. Gaston is a crook and a criminal and does nothing but secured money for him and his useless wife and his son who owns half of Antigua .. VOTE THEM OUT
these guys will get a air operators certificate in record time. meanwhile other entities working almost three years on acquiring one get delay after delay. guess its all about who you pay. Interesting how that works
Hello
I am a Nigerian prince. I am unable to refund the money you paid, as this newspaper has colluded with me to confirm. However if you will pay MORE money into something equally as dodgy, then I will transfer the gold to your account. Please provide your account details passwords etc
Is this fraud
How could Antigua Airways Defraud Customers? When there is not such an Airline.
Just find a fig leaf to issue Antiguan passports to crooks so you can thief some of the money. Notice how all these so called investors always get passports to sell? What happened to the CIP passports given to YIDA, WEIZ, Antigua Airways and the man who provided solar panels without batteries? Never could figure out why so-called investors must get passports, but then who accounts. Know that crooks always bad play each other.
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