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Aviation fuel crisis: Operators fear industry collapse, job losses
As of Friday, reports indicated that Jet A1 fuel had risen from about N300 per litre in February to about N1,000 per litre, causing a significant increase in the cost of tickets.
Aviation Round Table, which is a body of professionals in the sector, said more airlines might be forced to halt operations, in addition to the two domestic airlines not in operation at the moment. Aero Contractors had on July 18 announced the suspension of its operations, citing the impact of the challenging operating environment on its daily operations, while the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority on July 20 suspended the operations of Dana Air.
In an interview with one of our correspondents, a former Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency and Chief Executive Officer, TopBrass Aviation Company Limited, Capt. Roland Iyayi, said government must work towards reviving the refineries for the local production of JetA1. He added that government should consider supporting airlines in aviation fuel pricing in the short term.
He pointed out that many people were no longer travelling by air due to the hike in the price of tickets. This, he said, posed great danger to the survival of airlines and the aviation industry.
Iyayi added, “The key to the success of any airline is affordability. If fares are unaffordable, what you will end up having will be empty flights. Now, when you have empty flights, it will become a double whammy. At this point, how do you manage the sustainability of the airline?
“So, ultimately what we will have will be more airline failures. And if more airlines fail, it means that capacity will reduce and when this happens you will get very high fares. That is essentially what we are looking at now and it is a very precarious situation for the industry.
“This means there is imminent danger in the entire industry and it is bound to spiral out of control if something is not done urgently. So if the government considers aviation as a critical asset, I would expect it to intervene in JetA1 pricing.”
Also, the Assistant General Secretary of the Aviation Round Table, Mr Olumide Ohunayo, noted that the sector had been severely hit by the fuel crisis due to its dependence on importation and the high foreign exchange rate.
In an interview on Sunday, he added, “The Russia-Ukraine war has increased the average cost of fuel and all forms of gas productions, and this is exacerbated for Nigeria because of the weakening naira to the dollar. That has increased the pain on the airline and even the supplier. What we have is that one airline is grounded voluntarily and the other involuntarily.
“If things do not return to normal, other airlines may also be grounded. That is where we are going. It is funny that the government is telling us now, through the senate committee, that some of the aviation fuel is being exported to neighbouring countries and sold there.
“Though it is deregulated and the government does not subsidise it, why would they not be able to monitor the distribution that they have to move to neighbouring countries? Something is wrong. We need to tighten control on it.”
He urged the government to look at the port charges and taxes on aviation fuel and see if it could be suspended temporarily, pending when the price returns to normalcy. He added that it was risky to continue waiting for Dangote Refinery to start operations, noting that there must be a way to address the problem without delay.”
Ticket hits N150,000
Meanwhile, the cost of an economic ticket for an hour flight on domestic routes has increased by about 400 per cent in less than five months. It rose from about N30,000 in February 2022 to about N150,000 as of Saturday. This has been tied to the high cost of aviation fuel.
Although the latest cost varied among various airlines, findings showed that the few surviving domestic carriers had raised the price of air tickets to match the rise in the cost of aviation fuel.
As of 9am on Saturday, it was observed that the airfare for 12.45pm flight to Lagos from Abuja on Nigeria’s largest commercial airline, Air Peace, was put at N150,000, while that of 5.35pm went for N100,000.
For MaxAir, the 7.20am Sunday flight ticket from Kano to Lagos went for N130,000, while Lagos bound flight tickets from Abuja on Saturday were sold at N90,000.
The rates, however, differed on some other routes, as Ibom Air’s 6pm flight ticket on Saturday from Abuja to Uyo, for instance, went for N86,000.
Airline operators justified the jump in airfares, attributing it to the hike in aviation fuel, which accounted for about 60 per cent of the cost of operations of an aircraft.
This, according to them, had also caused lamentations among air travellers and led to a drop in the passenger volume lately, as they expressed fears of more airlines’ failures and a possible collapse of the industry if nothing was done urgently to salvage the situation.
Iyayi analysed how a commercial aircraft consumes fuel and what operators spend on fueling their airplanes for an hour flight.
He told one of our correspondents that most carriers in Nigeria were currently struggling to survive.
He said, “It is possible for aviation fuel to cause a jump in the cost of air tickets and the reason is very simple. Fuel as a component of operation is about 40 to 60 per cent of the cost of operating an aircraft. So when you take a flight that will last an hour, for instance, a Boeing 737, the fuel it burns is about 2.5 tonnes an hour.
“If you translate that into litres, you’re talking of 104,000 litres. At the current rate of fuel being N1,000/litre, what that essentially means is that an airline must sell tickets to cover the cost of fuel, which will be approximately N4.5m for that particular flight.
“So at N4.5m, if you are selling at N100,000 you will need to sell 45 seats to even cover that cost alone. That is not talking about the maintenance reserves, crew cost, insurance and all other factors that you need to consider for your cost of operations to be covered. Therefore, if you look at it from the perspective of just fuel, what you have are airlines struggling to even cover their cost. There is no margin left.”
He said if the charges to be paid to the various agencies and regulators were added, the fate of the airlines could best be imagined.
He added, “You need to also know that five per cent of whatever revenue they make goes to the NCAA. Essentially, we are saying that even before an airline starts operations, it is already struggling. Hence, airlines cannot continue to sustain losses for all the other agencies and service providers to thrive in the industry. This has been the situation in the last decades.
“The truth is that airlines are operating in the most difficult and hostile environment in the Nigerian landscape.”
By Okey Maduforo Awka
The emergence of Chief Ikeagwuonu Ugochinyere as the Minority Leader of the Federal House of Representatives has been described as a vindication of the fact that the Action People’s Party (APP ) represents the collective interests of the Nigerian masses.
Recall that recently, Ugochinyere was elected as the Minority Leader of the party in a keenly contested election of the Federal House of Representatives.
According to a statement by the Chairman Anambra state chapter of the APP Chief Chijioke Okeke, Ugochinyere had been consistent in offering himself as the voice of the people and that of the voiceless.
“It did not come to us as a surprise that our great leader High Chief Ugochinyere became the Minority leader of the Federal House of Representatives because he has always been consistent and focus towards providing himself as the only vent for the masses at the Green Chambers”
“We know his pedegre as a politician as well as a leader and he has remained focus in ensuring that the voiceless are heard and this is also a vindication of our party’s unflinching desire to provide a veritable platform in a democratic process”
Okeke further stated that the fifth columnists who had attempted to deregister the party have been put to shame adding that the party shall continue to champion the interests of the Nigerian people.
“They made failed attempt at deregistering our great party but they lost sight of the fact that the APP is firmely rooted on ground and has all that it takes to drive the wishes and aspirations of the Nigerian populace and with this recent development our traducers have been put to shame and our party is on the path of further greatness “. Okeke noted .
By Okey Maduforo Awka
Six members of the Indigenous People Of Biafra IPOB have been declared wanted by the Nigerian Police .
The six persons led by Mr Chukwuebuka Ohaechesi, include Emma Okonkwo, Jude Uwa, Gentle Okoro, Uchenna Dike, and Emmanuel Nwankwo who are said to be at large.
The were said to have fled to neighboring states in the South East hence signaling the other four Police Commands in the geopolitical zone to assist in the manhunt for them
The Police accused them of executing protests against the detaintion of the leader of IPOB Mazi Nnamdi Kanu who is currently serving jail terms in Sokoto Correction Center.
According to a statement issued by the Abia Police Public Relations Officer of the Command, ASP Eguavon Omokaro, the individuals are suspected members of IPOB who have allegedly participated in protests at various times and locations within the state.
The statement alleged that the protests were organised in connection with the continued detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu and demands for justice through the judicial process.
The Police Command further stated that these protests have allegedly resulted in breaches of peace and disruptions to law and order in Abia State. Consequently, the Police Intelligence Department reportedly concluded that the named individuals were among the principal organisers and coordinators of the demonstrations.
The statement further alleged that; ;
“It should be noted that on every 30th day of May, these men and their cohorts convene for the so-called remembrance of Biafra, holding clandestine meetings at various locations in the name of the emancipation of the Biafran Republic and the release of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.”
According to the police, the six individuals were invited on several occasions for questioning in relation to the allegations against them.
The statement indicated that the first invitation was issued on 18 December 2025, followed by a second invitation on 7 February 2026, and a third invitation on 3 March 2026.
The police alleged that the individuals failed to honour all three invitations.
The statement further asserted:
“These individuals were invited by the police on several occasions. Firstly, on 18 December 2025, they failed to honour the invitation. Again, they were invited on 7th February 2026 and failed to appear. Finally, they were invited on 3 March 2026, and they also failed to present themselves before the police.” It stated.
As a result, the Abia State Police Command announced that all six individuals had been formally declared wanted.
The police appealed to members of the public to provide any reliable information that could lead to their arrest and prosecution, stating that informants would be suitably rewarded.
The declaration of the six individuals as wanted persons is linked to allegations of their participation in pro-Biafra activities, demonstrations concerning the detention of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, and their alleged association with IPOB, an organisation that has been the subject of extensive scrutiny and security operations by Nigerian authorities.
In a statement shared on social media, VeryDarkMan argued that Wike may not fully understand the pain and trauma experienced by parents of abducted children and affected teachers. He claimed that the minister’s children were educated abroad, away from the security challenges facing many Nigerian families.Nigerian entertainment news
The activist stated that insecurity, kidnapping, and attacks on schools remain serious national concerns and should not be dismissed or reduced to political issues. He stressed that the fears and frustrations of parents whose children face security threats deserve greater attention from public officials.
VeryDarkMan further warned that political power is temporary, urging leaders to remain accountable to the people and sensitive to the challenges confronting ordinary Nigerians.
DSS Detains Novelist Okey Ndibe at Lagos Airport, Awaits Clearance from Abuja
Renowned Nigerian novelist, journalist, and academic, Okey Ndibe, was reportedly detained by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) upon his arrival at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on Monday morning.
Ndibe disclosed his situation in a message sent while in custody, stating: “I’ve been with the SSS now for more than an hour. They’re waiting for clearance from some oga before they let me go.”
According to sources close to the writer, his detention follows a pattern that dates back to previous administrations, including that of former President Goodluck Jonathan, during which he was frequently stopped and questioned over his critical commentaries on Nigerian governance and public affairs.
However, associates noted that Ndibe has largely stepped away from active commentary in Nigerian media over the past two years, focusing instead on writing books and his academic responsibilities at University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he teaches.
A close friend of the author and former Anambra State Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, C. Don Adinuba, said similar incidents had occurred several times in the past. He explained that airport DSS officials typically contacted their superiors in Abuja before eventually releasing Ndibe.
“It is a pity that this agency doesn’t update its database to enable officers on duty at the airport to know that the agency no longer regards Prof. Ndibe as a security threat to the administration,” Adinuba said.
He added that on previous occasions, the DSS had apologized to the respected author after determining that his detention was unwarranted.
As of the time of filing this report, there was no official statement from the DSS regarding the circumstances surrounding Ndibe’s latest detention. The development has raised renewed concerns about the treatment of government critics and the continued use of security watchlists affecting returning Nigerians.
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