Blocked Nigerian airlines threaten to halt domestic flights

Abuja –

Monday could be a different day for Nigerians who want to fly from one city in the country to another. And with good reason: Airlines, hit hard by rising fuel prices, are threatening to stop offering domestic flights.

According to the managers of these companies, the price of kerosene increased from 190 to 700 naira per liter, i.e. from $0.45 to nearly $1.70. An astonishing increase is mainly due to the conflict in Ukraine, which began in February.

In fact, fuel prices have skyrocketed worldwide since Russia invaded its neighbour, triggering a wave of Western sanctions against Moscow, the main exporter of oil and gas.

“Our labor organizations support the airline operators. We call on the federal government to quickly set the record straight to save our industry”Geeze Oshimi Aba, Deputy Secretary General of the Nigerian Airlines Federation.

The paradox of a country that imports and exports at the same time

At airports, flight cancellations and delays have become common since March due to kerosene shortages. The height of the discrepancy: With 1.4 million barrels of crude oil per day, Nigeria is the main producer of crude oil in Africa. But the country has low refining capacity and relies almost entirely on imports to meet its fuel needs, leaving the domestic market vulnerable to disruptions.

Added to this is a completely different problem: airline ticket prices have tripled on certain national airlines in recent weeks. According to the airline owners, travelers in Nigeria pay their fare in the national currency naira, but it must pay the fuel suppliers in US dollars, causing revenue shortfall.

“Everything we need for our operations comes from abroad. We are forced to get dollars in a context where foreign exchange is hard to come by. If nothing is done as quickly as possible, businesses may close.”Explains Allen Onima, CEO of Air Peace Nigeria and Vice President of the Airlines Operators Association.

The elect have been captured

In March, airline owners stood before MPs to explain the difficulties their business faces.

“We risk putting our safety at risk. Each of us sets our feet to travel. Every one of us. If you ask someone to travel to Maiduguri by road, they will not go. Why would we put our safety at risk?”asks Kashim Shatima, one of the owners present at this meeting with the elected officials.

A danger confirmed by the Director General of the Civil Aviation Authority, Musa Noah, who was also in the Federal Parliament to assess the situation.

“With the current prices of airline tickets, companies will not survive”he decided.

Since then, the situation has not changed and airlines insist they will suspend operations despite last-minute pleas. At the moment, the suspension of flights does not affect international airlines, since transactions are made in foreign currencies.