Airfares have remained stagnant in Nigeria despite the rising cost of aviation fuel by 184 per cent in the last two months, occasioned by the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.
However, sources in different airlines who did not want their names in print, considering the sensitivity of the matter, told The PUNCH on Tuesday that the “pressure of competition” among local carriers kept the airfares low.
Aviation fuel, which was sold at N900 per litre in January, increased to N1,121 per litre as of 26 February 2026 and now sells for N2,557 per litre.Aviation fuel is the highest consuming commodity of airlines’ finances, taking about 40 per cent of airlines’ resources. This is closely followed by aircraft maintenance.
Despite the spike in fuel prices and the financial burden on airlines, competition has been keeping the airlines in check against upping their ticket prices. Between January and March 30, the product has increased by 184 per cent; yet, airfares still sell for between N106,286 and N147,000 across major routes in the domestic market.A search on the booking portal of Ibom Air, for instance, shows the Lagos-Abuja flight for April 4 goes for N114,600, while Uyo to Abuja on the same airline and date also sells for the same N114,500.
For United Nigeria Airlines’ portal, the Kano-Lagos flight from April 1 to April 7 sells for N142,500 for a one-way ticket, while the Lagos-Port Harcourt flight for the same date goes for the same N142,500 on the airline’s portal
Besides, the Lagos-Abuja flight for April 4 on Aero Contractors goes for N106,286, while the Asaba-Abuja flight on the same airline sells for N102,179.
However, Air Peace is the most expensive on the local scene, with Lagos to Abuja air tickets for April 3 bookings selling for N147,000, while the return ticket – Abuja to Lagos – also goes for the same rate.
The airline source said that instead of the fares going up, the operators had kept them at the same price as two months ago, yet they were struggling to remain in business.
The source also attributed the situation to the number of scheduled indigenous operators, in spite of low passenger traffic.
As of the time of filing this report, there are about 15 scheduled operators, while another two airlines in February and March, Enugu Air and Binani Airlines, respectively, secured Air Operators’ Certificates from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, which would enable them to operate.
Nigeria’s passenger traffic has been on a steady decline in recent years. The industry recorded 15.6 million passenger movements on domestic and international routes in 2024, 15.8 million in 2023 and 16.2 million in 2022.
One of the sources said, “It’s the pressure of competition. Instead of going up, the pressure on pricing is downwards because of the number of players and the pricing they have entered the market with. It’s simply competitive pressure that keeps airfares stagnant.”