Nigeria Airline Operators Deny Fixing Base Fare, Lament Loss of $60m to Bird Strikes, Flight Cancellations

The Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) has denied fixing base fare for economy flight tickets at N50, 000 as travellers insisted that the sudden increase in fares suggested collusion by the association.

The operators also complained that in 2021, they lost $60 million (N24 billon) to bird strike alone. The amount was used to replace their aircraft engines destroyed by bird strike.

In addition, they said cancelled flights due to lack of lack of night landing facilities at some airports, known as sunset airports, cost them over N20 billion in 2021.

However, indications showed that air travellers have started shunning the airports as airlines have been recording low passenger traffic due to high fares.

Speaking during a media conference, in Lagos, on Wednesday, the Vice President of AON and Chairman/CEO of Air Peace, Allen Onyema said the N50, 000 ticket price had always been in the airlines’ systems in the last five years, adding that airlines only adjust ticket cost based on their operational costs.

Onyema said what the airlines did was to work out unit cost per seat, which he said determined their basic ticket price.

Onyema who was representing the President of AON, pointed out that cost of aviation fuel was increased by over 200 per cent, with over 100 per cent depreciation in exchange rate in the last two years, while ground handling companies had increased their rates by over 300 per cent, yet cost of air ticket remained below $100.

“People have asked us how we maintain our planes with the fares we charge. In as much as we are rendering services, our business must be sustained. The repair of just one aircraft engine can take everything an airline makes in one month. Airline business is not a profitable business,” Onyema added.

He said that no airline loves to delay flights but factors beyond the airlines’ control cause flight delays.

Some of the causes of flight delays he mentioned included bird strikes, airport apron congestion, lack of space for check-in of passengers, poor airport infrastructure, air traffic flow control, bad weather and unruly behavior of passengers.

Onyema said that bird strike incidents in Nigeria was on the increase despite efforts by the Federal Airports of Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to stem it, thus forcing airlines to ground aircraft that should be operating and losing huge revenue.

He, therefore, called on the concerned authorities to provide airport equipment to help reduce bird strikes in Nigeria.

The AON said it strongly objected to the multiple designation granted foreign carriers such as Qatar Airways and Ethiopian Airlines by the federal government.

“Designating foreign airlines to multiple airports in Nigeria impede growth of domestic airlines and the aviation sector. All foreign airlines put together do not provide 10 per cent of jobs provided by the smallest airline in Nigeria.

“Multiple designation granted foreign airlines would lead to job losses and domestic airlines closing shops,” Onyema added.

Meanwhile, THISDAY investigations have confirmed low turnout of passengers at the airports since Monday, following the hike in airfares to N50, 000.

This meant that one way tickets would cost over N50, 000 and might increase to N80, 000 to N90, 000 per ticket.

This was confirmed by some protocol personnel who spoke to THISDAY at the domestic wing of the Lagos airport.

They revealed that the increase in fares have reduced passenger traffic at the airport.

“You have to know that the minimum ticket you can buy now is N50, 000. In the last two days I have sold tickets as high as N85, 000; some N75, 000 and some N70, 000. But the traffic is dropping fast. I am sure that if passenger traffic continues to drop, airlines will be forced to bring down their fares,” the source who pleased to remain anonymous said.

THISDAY spoke to a passenger who travelled from Abuja to Lagos, on Wednesday, who disclosed that many of the seats in the aircraft that brought him to Lagos were empty.

“I was surprised at that time of the day, first flight from Abuja there was so many empty seats. The airlines have to understand that there is no money in this country. It is the middle class that flies. If they shun air travel the money bags cannot sustain their operations,” he said.

A spokesman of one of the major airlines confirmed to THISDAY that passenger traffic has dropped and he was worried that it would drop further.

Chinedu Eze

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