60 days. No bag. No resolution. African travellers deserve better

By Peter Martey Agbeko

On June 29, 2025, my brother landed in Accra from Washington, D.C., connecting through Lomé on ASKY Airlines. He checked four bags. Three arrived. One — tagged ET328060 — vanished without a trace.

He filed a missing baggage report immediately in Accra (Ref: ACCKP10862). That was 60 days ago.

Since then, the experience has been nothing short of disgraceful:

• 60 days of silence.
• 60 days without a meaningful update.
• 60 days without an apology.
• 60 days without compensation.
• Emails ignored. Calls unanswered. WhatsApp messages read and left on blue ticks. Social media posts bypassed.

This is not a minor inconvenience. It is a total failure of responsibility, a betrayal of trust, and unfortunately, an all-too-common feature of air travel in Africa.

Travelling across the continent is already fraught with challenges: overpriced tickets, unreliable schedules, and constant delays. The very least passengers deserve is for their luggage to arrive safely — or, failing that, for an airline to respond promptly and respectfully. Instead, ASKY Airlines has turned a loyal customer into a victim of neglect and contempt.

My brother escalated the matter to the African Airlines Association (AFRAA). To their credit, AFRAA responded promptly and urged ASKY to act. But after an unacceptable response from ASKY as follows days later? Still nothing. No movement whatsoever. The silence continues.

ASKY is not an outlier. In July 2023, I suffered a similar ordeal with Ethiopian Airlines. Flying from Accra to London, my bag went missing. It took 10 days, endless calls, and repeated trips to Heathrow before it was returned — without a word of apology or a cent of compensation. This is a pattern of arrogance that can no longer be ignored.

If African airlines want to compete globally, if they want to stand as champions of AfCFTA and Pan-African excellence, then customer care cannot be optional. Accountability cannot be an afterthought. Silence cannot be a strategy.

It is time for regulators to act. AFRAA, IATA Africa, and national authorities like the Ghana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) must enforce strict standards:

1. Mandatory timelines for resolving lost baggage claims.
2. Transparent, proactive communication with passengers.
3. Fair and timely compensation when airlines fail.

Anything less is unacceptable.

Sixty days without a bag, without respect, and without accountability is not just incompetence — it is a disgrace.

ASKY Airlines: the world is watching. AFRAA: the responsibility is yours too. African travellers deserve better. The clock is ticking. Fix this now.

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