Why airfares on Nigerian routes are higher
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Westlink Airlines, Capt. Ibrahim Mshelia, has shed more insights on why airfares on the Nigerian routes are more expensive than its other African countries, especially in the West African.
Speaking with our correspondent on phone over the weekend, Mshelia said that apart from the foreign exchange (forex) unification policy of the Federal Government, which eradicated the black-market rates and increased the value of dollars against the naira, the operating environment and charges on the Nigerian routes also contributed to the high airfares on the country’s routes.
According to Mshelia, the handling rates and other levies, including navigation charges in Nigeria are higher than other countries in the West Coast, saying that this further pushes the cost of air tickets up on the Nigerian routes.
He said: “Air tickets are higher because to come into our airspace and get out, costs the airlines more than it do elsewhere. There was a time I computed what it costs British Airways to fly a Boeing 777 aircraft from London to Accra and then from London to Abuja, flying the same aircraft.
“I tried to look at air navigation, the handling charges and some other things to rotate the aircraft from the airspace of Ghana and exit at the same point back to London, the difference between that and when it enters from Kano end to Abuja and exit our airspace back to London again.
The difference between the charges of that airspace and the one of Ghana is about $200 difference and the distance from the borders of Ghana to Accra and the border of Nigeria to Abuja, Nigeria’s own is shorter by about 110 miles or thereabout.
“Also, the handling; to rotate a B777 out of Accra, the handling company in Accra is charging about $1,000 and in Nigeria here, it is close to about $3,000. So, if you look at it by and large, the operators have to recoup their investments with some profits. Therefore, tickets out of Nigeria have to be commensurate with what they spend. That is why Nigeria has to pay more, but who is punishing who? We are punishing ourselves.
“Nigerians should not pay much, but we are struggling to run our aviation the way others run it. It was like this when I came in. I came into the industry and I have now clocked about 40 years in it and it is still like this. I am sure if we do not do anything on it, it will remain like this.”
Also, Mrs. Susan Akpoariaye, the President of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agency (NANTA), said that with the forex unification, air travellers, particularly those travelling on the international routes should expect fluctuating airfares based on the exchange rate between the Nigerian naira and the US dollar.
Akpoariaye, however, said that the forex unification was good for the Nigerian economy and would make the repatriation of ticket sales funds easy and possible.
She, however, clarified that the International Air Transport Association (IATA) does not have the power to fix foreign exchange for airlines as claimed in some quarters.
“So, that policy they brought was to unify the rates so that we will have only one rate, and that one rate will be determined by the I& E window, and anyone that understands this, will know that there will be a lot of fluctuations in the rates,” she said.
She explained that airfares are denominated in dollars and converted to naira at the prevailing exchange rate at the time of booking or payment. Therefore, if the naira depreciates against the dollar, airfares would increase accordingly. Conversely, if the naira appreciates against the
