Nigerian aviation unions accuse NSA of favouring Air Peace after Lagos airport taxiway dispute
Nigerian aviation unions have accused the Office of the National Security Adviser (NSA) of prioritising Air Peace’s commercial interests over national security, following an alleged security breach at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos on 11 August 2026. At a news conference in Lagos, the unions—including NUATE, ATSSSAN, NAAPE, ANAP and AUPCTRE—claimed that the NSA was shifting attention away from the incident, in which five Air Peace-branded buses allegedly blocked an aircraft manoeuvring area and taxiway during an industrial dispute. The unions said this action exposed moving aircraft to serious safety risks and accused the NSA of instead pursuing the airline’s interest in scrapping statutory aviation charges.
The unions explained that the Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) and Cargo Sales Charge (CSC) are statutory revenues collected from passengers and cargo operators by airlines on behalf of the Federal Government. These charges fund the operations of five key aviation agencies: the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), and the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT). The unions warned that abolishing these charges without an alternative funding arrangement could cripple aviation oversight, air navigation, accident investigation and weather forecasting in Nigeria.
According to the unions, the dispute began when Air Peace allegedly refused to allow its employees to join trade unions and failed to remit TSC and CSC collected from passengers. The intervention of the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development led to the suspension of planned industrial action, but the unions allege that Air Peace escalated the conflict by blocking the taxiway. They further claimed that while the police are investigating the unions, Air Peace has withdrawn from the NCAA’s regulatory investigation into the incident, raising concerns about equal application of the law and regulatory independence.
The unions presented five major demands: immediate conclusion and public release of the NSA’s investigation into the August 11 incident; equal application of the law to all airlines; no scrapping of TSC or CSC without transparent consultation; immediate remittance of outstanding TSC by defaulting airlines with sanctions; and protection of workers’ rights to unionise. They also announced plans to petition the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for a forensic audit of Air Peace’s funding and ownership, citing unanswered questions about the airline’s financial origins and alleged protection from accountability.
For sub-Saharan African travel sellers, these developments may affect ticketing, fees and the reliability of Nigerian aviation oversight. There is no information on how the dispute may impact flight schedules, agency commissions or booking procedures. Open questions remain about the outcome of the investigations, the future of statutory charges, and whether similar disputes could arise with other airlines. Agencies should monitor for official updates and be prepared for possible changes to aviation funding, safety oversight and union relations in Nigeria.
