Local airfares have risen by more than 100 percent ahead of the Christmas season as passenger demand intensifies and aircraft shortages worsen. Many travellers are now struggling to secure seats on key domestic routes, with several airlines already fully booked.
The combination of high demand and limited aircraft capacity is expected to trigger fresh rounds of delays and cancellations during the festive period, aviation analysts say.
Industry stakeholders fear that diaspora travellers may be the hardest hit, as many will return to Nigeria only to face difficulty connecting to cities such as Enugu, Owerri, Asaba and Port Harcourt.
Checks on airline booking platforms show that most flights to these high-traffic destinations are fully booked from December 20 to early January. Tickets still available are priced between N350,000 and N500,000, depending on the airline. Some last seats are listed at up to N600,000.
One-way fares on the Lagos–Enugu route range between N350,000 and N400,000. Lagos–Abuja flights are slightly cheaper at N150,000 to N350,000 for the same period.
“Most of the airlines operating on the busy Christmas routes are already full. For the few with seats, the fares are very high. Some tickets now cost up to N500,000, which many Nigerians cannot afford,” Ndukwe Ginika Ogechi, CEO of Geena Travels and Tours Limited, told BusinessDay.
Ogechi said that unless more aircraft are deployed before the holiday period, fares will rise further and many passengers may be unable to travel.
Passenger Glut And Fewer Aircraft
The industry has recorded a steady passenger glut over the past two years, largely due to a shrinking fleet. Several airlines have been unable to return aircraft from maintenance as a result of high costs driven by foreign exchange scarcity. Others were grounded by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority for failing to meet maintenance requirements.
Six years ago, Nigeria had 10 domestic airlines operating more than 120 aircraft. NCAA data obtained last year shows the number has fallen to 91, including aircraft still on maintenance.
In a recent paper, Aero Contractors’ Chief Financial Officer, Charles Grant, said the declining number of serviceable aircraft is one of the clearest signs that the aviation sector requires urgent intervention.
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