Rise in aviation fuel price shoots it to between N410 and N450 pl
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Domestic airfares have gone up 100 per cent less than two weeks after airline operators warned that the 100 per cent hike in aviation fuel price to N400 per litre within a year would raise ticket prices.
A one-way economy ticket now costs over N50,000 on average across all carriers.
Aviation fuel price rose again on 20 February to between N410 and N450 per litre, depending on the city, against N400 per litre on 17 February, without prior notice to airlines. It is predicted to rise to N500 in a few days.
Fliers are groaning over the high cost of fares, describing the hike as too exorbitant and seeking government intervention.
The Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) listed operational challenges causing flight delays and cancellations to include:
- Non-availability of aviation fuel (Jet A1)
- Rising cost of aviation fuel
- Non-availability of foreign exchange (forex) for aircraft parts and maintenance
- Customs delay in clearing spare parts
- Poor air traffic flow
- Inadequate check-in counters
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Unreliable aviation fuel supply
“Jet A1 today costs above N410 in Lagos, N422 in Abuja and Port Harcourt, and N429 in Kano per litre and has continued to rise fast and steadily.
“On top of the continuous rise in the fuel price, fuel supply is at best epileptic at several airports thereby causing delays,” the AON said in a statement, reported by Nairametrics.
It condemned attacks on airline staff and facilities by passengers over flight delays or cancellations.
Airlines that have raised fares for a one-way economy flight from Lagos to and from Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kaduna, and Warri include:
- Azman Air – N50,000
- Max Air – N50,000
- Ibom Air – N53,000
- Arik Air – N50,250
- Air Peace – N50,000
- Dana Air – N50,000
- United Nigeria – N50,750
Passengers who book on the day of travel may pay between N80,000 and N100,000 for a one-way economy.
Azman Air blames high operational costs
“The increase in ticket fares is never with the intention of hurting or extorting but for us to stay afloat in the provision of safe and reliable flight experience to our passengers.
“The review became necessary due to hike in prices of aviation-related materials, services and FOREX,’’ Azman Air explained on its Twitter account.
