Lagos — In a bid to forestall lost of its passengers to other airlines and disruption of flights by Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited (BASL), managers of MMA2 terminal Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos, Aero Contractors, one of the airlines using the facility, has paid N77million to BASL as Passenger Service Charge (PSC).

This was confirmed to our correspondent by the BASL, Head, Public Communications, Olugbenga Odugbesan, in Lagos yesterday.

According to him, Aero has paid N77 million and BASL has no problem with the airline.

Odugbesan added that apart from the Aero, Nigerian Eagle Airlines and Dana Airlines are also in good stand.

He disclosed that as at last week, IRS and other airlines were still making frantic effort to sort out things with BASL.

The frantic efforts made by the airlines to pay the PSC may not be unconnected with the inconvenience likely to be suffered by its passengers and the embarrassment it would cause the airline as a result of long queues at the boarding gates.

We recall that Bi-Courtney had last week said that beginning from October 2009, passengers are to pay the PSC directly to it at the boarding gates due to the refusal of airlines to remit the charge already embedded in the ticket fares to the company.

A reliable source told our correspondent that airlines using the terminal are indebted to BASL to the tune of $500million on various charges.

If the new style of collecting PSC from passengers by BASL is anything to go by, only airlines that are not indebted or that have shown willingness to remit reasonable part of their debts would be allowed to check in their passengers without having to go through the rigour of first purchasing their tickets and later go on another long queues to pay N1, 000 passenger processing charge.

One of the airline operators was said to have paid in advance over N250,000 for two booklets for two of its flights out of Lagos and distribute to its passengers at the point of purchasing tickets to save the airlines from losing passengers to other airlines whose passengers had seamless thoroughfare at the boarding gate.