Air Peace Ltd. has denied that its fare charges are exploitative, explaining that fares are a reflection of operating cost and that for a one-hour flight, the airline’s operating cost exceeds N14 million.
Speaking yesterday (Friday, December 6) at a news conference in Lagos, the airline’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Mrs Oluwatoyin Olajide, further disclosed that N7 million is required to purchase 4,000 litres of jet A1 (aviation fuel), which is currently sold for N1,400 per litre.
She added that for Aircraft, Crew, Maintenance and Insurance (ACMI), the airline spends about 4,000 dollars for a one-hour flight.
According to the COO, N5 million is required for insurance for every one-hour flight, a figure significantly higher than what operators’ counterparts pay globally.
“There are factors that define operating cost and they include aviation fuel which takes between 60 per cent and 65 per cent of the operating cost.
“One litre of fuel is N1,400. If I have to operate a one-hour flight from here to Abuja, Port Harcourt, Owerri, I am going to be using about 4,000 litres of fuel.
“So, on average, a one-hour flight costs N7 million on fuel alone. Also, ACMI costs 4,000 dollars for leasing planes, considering the challenges we are currently facing,” Olajide said.
She explained that, on average, operating a one-hour flight costs N7 million, with an additional N7 million for fuel, bringing the total to N14 million.
She noted that insurance for a one-hour flight costs an additional N5 million.
“For financing, we pay about 30 per cent to borrow money, while foreign airlines pay around three percent. Also, Nigerian airlines pay four times more than others for spare parts,” she added.
According to Olajide, given the operating costs of Nigerian airlines, it is not easy operating within the current airfares.
She emphasised that a one-hour trip within Nigeria should cost no less than N500,000 as airfare.
Speaking on the recent report of fare exploitation, Olajide said that the allegation had cost the airline a major international slot.
She also clarified that the Federal Consumer and Customer Protection Commission (FCCPC) only invited the airline for enquiry and not investigation as reported by some media.
Disclosing that the Chairman of the Airline, Dr Allen Onyema, honoured the invitation, she, however, said that the appropriate thing for the FCCPC to have done was to have directed the enquiry to the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the regulator of the airline, not the airline itself.
Olajide recalled the airline’s selflessness during COVID-19, Xenophobia and the evacuation of stranded Nigerians from foreign countries at no cost, describing that as an indication of its fair not exploitative business deals.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the FCCPC had on Dec. 2 written to the airline, inviting them for an enquiry on the complaint of fare exploitation.
The FCCPC later clarified that it was not conducting an investigation into the airline but rather an inquiry, contrary to reports circulated in the media.
