Operators blame forex, inflation for surging airfares

Local airlines have attributed the skyrocketing airfares to foreign exchange volatility and the soaring inflation in the country.

The Chief Operating Officer of United Nigeria Airlines, Osita Okonkwo, told Sunday PUNCH that the current economic challenges in the country were taking toll on the aviation sector.

“It is an economic issue. We have little naira chasing forex, and it is because of the economy that is stagnant and not growing as fast.

“Many people are shunning travelling by air. So, there is a limit to which you can increase your fares to be able to reflect your cost. Because if you increase it to the real cost, many people will not fly. Operators are trying to see how far that can go, hoping there is a turnaround. When we talk about economic issues, we mean inflation, lack of opportunities, lack of growth in the economy, and high interest rates.

“Activities are slowing down. Although people are still getting fares below N100,000, which is not sustainable. Just a few tickets are sold above that, whereas the minimum should be N150,000. We are trying to balance it.”

The Chief Executive Officer of Centurion Security Limited, John Ojikutu, added context to the current challenges, explaining, “In the early 90s, tickets were selling for $100. Selling your ticket for less than $100 will not work. Factor your fares against the dollar.

“There are so many things we were doing at that time that didn’t make us feel the price. We had Dunlop tyres at the time, and some of them started producing tyres for our aircraft. Today, there is no part of aircraft that we are not importing.”

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