The airline operators are seeking for a 45% increment in flight rates following the downtrodden status of the naira in exchange for the dollar.
Nigeria seems far from recovering from the 15.6% inflationary trend following another impending massive price increment in the aviation sector as companies are currently running at a loss.
The current spike in the exchange rate of the dollar to the naira may be taking its toll on the country’s foreign-exchange-dependent aviation sector as airline operators seek to increase their fares by 45 per cent.
The dollar exchange rate, which currently stands at N350, according to the airline operators, has further pushed the cost of running the business beyond them.
Some operators told The Guardian that their plight was not helped by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) disapproval of a new air fare regime that should have officially gone up by 45 per cent, to keep pace with the dollar rate.
Some airlines, however, appear to have resorted to self-help in raising ticket prices for over-the-counter purchase. The act, which is described as a sharp practice by NCAA’s rules, has seen some tickets gone up by N10, 000 to N20, 000, depending on the airline and the time of purchase.
An operator, who is also a leading member of the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), told a correspondent on the condition of anonymity that the current fare regime, in relation to foreign exchange, was not realistic.
He said: “The current rate is killing our business and it seems our regulators don’t care if we go into extinction. The truth is that this sector cannot survive under the current realities. You cannot do anything without the dollar, which is not in anyway favourable.”
The operator added that several planes were either due for checks or had been sent for the same purpose overseas but still could not be returned due to the further high cost of service caused by the forex spike.