₦airaland Forum

Domestic airlines in Nigeria have increased their minimum base fares to about N200,000 for one-way tickets following the continued rise in aviation fuel prices and mounting operational costs.

Checks across the booking portals of several airlines showed that the fare increase affects most operators, although a few carriers are yet to adjust their ticket prices as of press time.

Daily Trust reports that United Nigeria Airlines has fixed its minimum fare at N200,000 regardless of destination, while Air Peace raised its one-way fares to about N211,600. Ibom Air also adjusted its base fare upward to approximately N200,300.

However, some airlines retained relatively lower fares on selected routes. Arik Air maintained fares between N113,000 and N114,000 for Abuja-Lagos flights, while Aero Contractors’ fares ranged from N123,127 to N146,702. ValueJet’s fares stood between N118,571 and N132,857 for Lagos-Abuja trips.

The increase came as aviation fuel, also known as Jet A1, now sells for about N2,650 per litre at some airports across the country, putting additional pressure on airline operators.

This is despite the slash in ex-depot price by the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemicals earlier in the week.

Some of the operators who spoke with our correspondent justified the decision to raise fares, blaming it on rising operational expenses, shrinking cash flow and growing debts within the aviation sector.

An airline official, who spoke anonymously because he was not authorised to comment publicly, said the adjustment followed extensive consultations and careful assessment of the economic situation.

According to the source, the fare increase was an individual business decision by each airline and not a coordinated action among operators.

“We have adjusted our minimum fares to N200,000 per flight irrespective of the route. This decision was taken after serious consideration of many factors,” the source said.

The official explained that airlines could no longer sustain operations under the current cost of aviation fuel, warning that failure to review fares could worsen the crisis in the industry.

“We cannot continue to subsidise travellers with the current situation of Jet A1. Cash flow has dried up and debts are increasing,” the source added.

Operators also appealed to passengers for understanding, describing the increase as painful but necessary for the survival of domestic airlines.

Meanwhile, aviation analyst, Group Capt. John Ojikutu has stressed the need to fix the pipelines conveying Jet A1 to the Murtala Muhammad Airport in Ikeja Lagos in order to reduce the logistics cost of bringing the product.

“Without bridging the supply with pipelines from Ejigbo to the airport, you may not get it lower than that. Give the concession out to the airlines (AON) or any other private operator who should not get more than N50/litre for the bridging or N100m for 2m litre instead of the N350/ltr or N700m for 2m daily by transportation,” he said.

THE Federal Government, yesterday, disclosed that it will not close the Eko Bridge in Lagos State, as it had earlier planned.

The Minister of Works, Senator Dave Umahi, made the disclosure during an inspection of the bridge.

Umahi said: “We directed that this bridge be closed. That was about two weeks back, but our caring President Bola Tinubu is very much concerned about the closure of this Eko Bridge.

“He has asked me to come back here and take a second look at that decision so that we don’t induce much hardship on Nigerians.”

The Minister said that his team re-assessed the strength of the bridge on Monday and confirmed that the closure could be suspended at the moment.

He said: “We have done our technical evaluation in line with the President’s directive. Putting safety over and above every decision, we have seen that, for now, we are safe, but we won’t get to a situation where any Nigerian on this bridge will not be safe. We have agreed on three procedures.”

According to Umahi, the first procedure is not to close the bridge now but to monitor the progression or otherwise of the crack.

He said that the crack was not progressing either arithmetically or geometrically at the moment.

He said: “We have agreed on remedial work that could be carried out within four months by Buildwell, and that is by doing additional piling and a pie cap and joining it to the cracked one to bypass the section that is cracked.

“That can lead us to open the entire bridge and when that is done, we will wait for the entire design whereby the entire slab within that section will be lifted and then we will demolish what was cracked.”

He said: “I can assure you that the President means well, and we owe him prayers and support, and God will take us there.”

Ogbomoso Teachers Take To Streets To Protest Abduction Of Schoolchildren, Colleagues By Gunmen In Oyo State

Teachers in Ogbomoso, Oyo State have taken to the streets in a wave of protest over the abduction of schoolchildren and teachers in parts of the state, escalating public pressure on authorities to respond decisively to worsening insecurity in schools.

The protesting teachers expressed anger, fear and frustration over repeated attacks on educational institutions, insisting that classrooms have become unsafe for both pupils and staff.

Many of them carried placards and chanted solidarity songs while demanding urgent government intervention and the immediate release of the abducted teachers and pupils.

In a video seen by SaharaReporters, the protesters could be heard calling for immediate action from security agencies and government authorities. One of the placards carried during the demonstration read, “Government take action,” capturing the mood of urgency and distress among the educators.

The protest comes in the wake of widespread outrage following a recent attack on schools in Oyo State, where armed men invaded educational facilities in the Oriire Local Government Area, abducting teachers and pupils.

The incident has continued to spark concern across the state and beyond, particularly among education stakeholders.

Oriire has remained at the centre of attention following the assault. The kidnappers later released disturbing videos from captivity showing two victims pleading for rescue.

In one of the videos, a visibly distressed nursing mother who identified herself as a staff member of First Baptist Church in Ogbomoso appealed to authorities and the church for urgent intervention.

She said, “We are here, we need help from the government and the state government, both the church, First Baptist Church in Yawota and the community. We need your help so that these people will release us,” she said tearfully.

Another victim, the Principal of Community High School, Esiele, Mrs. Racheal Alamu, also appeared in a separate video, calling on authorities and Nigerians to act swiftly before the situation deteriorates further. Her emotional appeal added to growing fears over the safety of abductees.

The attackers were said to have stormed LA Primary School and Community Grammar School in Ahoro-Esiele community on Friday, killing a teacher and abducting several pupils, students, and staff members in the process.

The brutality of the incident has intensified calls for stronger protection of schools, particularly in rural and semi-urban communities.

In response, the Oyo State Government announced that security agencies had sealed off possible escape routes around the National Park axis to prevent the abductors from fleeing into neighbouring states. Authorities say coordinated rescue operations are ongoing.

The Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Dotun Oyelade, earlier disclosed that personnel of the Nigerian Army, police officers, the Amotekun Corps, and local hunters had been mobilised in a joint effort to rescue the victims and apprehend the perpetrators.

Teachers stage protest in Ogbomoso, Oyo State over abduction of colleagues and students by terrorists

Credit : temilolasobolatv pic.twitter.com/Idr769BNU4

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