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Nigeria’s airlines resolved to stop domestic operations from yesterday in protest at the spiralling cost of jet fuel.
It has risen almost fourfold this year, which was unsustainable, the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) said.
“No airline in the world can absorb this kind of sudden shock from such an astronomical rise over a short period,” its statement said.
The hikes have been triggered principally by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at the end of February.
AON, which represents Nigeria’s nine domestic carriers, said the airlines had been having to subsidise services over the last four months.
There have been many flight cancellations and delays since March, often blamed on a shortage of jet fuel. The price of tickets has also tripled on some routes in recent weeks.
Passengers in Nigeria pay for fares in naira, the local currency that has been devaluing. However, fuel suppliers need to be paid in US dollars.
Despite being Africa’s largest oil producer, Nigeria imports almost all its jet fuel.
AON said that it had told the government, MPs, the state-owned oil company and the association representing fuel sellers that something needed to be done to bring costs down.
The hikes could not be fully passed on to passengers as they were “already experiencing a lot of difficulties”, it said.
The government has not yet commented on the planned strike.
AON said operations would cease indefinitely from Monday, apologised to customers and urged them to make alternative arrangements.
The manager of one of the airlines told the BBC the suspension would not affect international flights – though those with internal connections will be hit.
It will be a massive disruption for travellers in Nigeria and another blow for one of Africa’s largest economies, reports the BBC’s Ishaq Khalid from the capital, Abuja.
Flights are often the preferred option for travel these days for those who can afford it because of insecurity on roads across the country, he says.
Kidnapping gangs operate on highways, targeting vehicles and then abducting passengers who they hold for ransom.
There has been general outrage on social media after the announcement – with people bemoaning the state of the economy, and advising those that opt to travel by road to factor in ransom money.
Last month, a train was targeted on the high-speed link between Abuja and the city of Kaduna and at least 62 people are known to have been taken hostage.
According to security risk management firm Beacon Consulting, in the first three months of this year more than 3 500 people were killed and many more kidnapped by armed groups in Nigeria.
Meanwhile, Mass burials have been held for 48 people killed in north-western Nigeria during an attack on a village by notorious gangsters who operate in the region.
Known locally as bandits, the gunmen – often riding motorbikes – steal animals, kidnap for ransom, tax farmers and kill those who confront them.
Details are only now emerging of Wednesday’s raid in the remote Bakura area of Zamfara state because of communication problems.
Dozens of gunmen on motorbikes attacked Sabon-Garin Damri village shooting at residents, taking livestock and forcing hundreds of people to flee.
A local official told the BBC a military helicopter and soldiers had been deployed to Bakura following the attack.
But the security forces appear to be overstretched as they deal with major threats across the country including:
The armed gangs – which operate in the north-west, though not exclusively – targeting unprotected rural communities, schools as well as travellers on major highways
The continuing Islamist insurgency in the north-east
And separatists demanding a breakaway state in the south-east, who have recently stepped up attacks.
EasyJet plans to remove seats on some of its planes this summer, so that it can operate flights with fewer cabin crew.
The airline is battling staff shortages as it attempts to return to pre-pandemic levels of service.
By taking out the back row of seating on its A319 fleet, EasyJet said it will be able to fly with three cabin crew instead of four.
That would limit numbers on board to a maximum 150 passengers.
EasyJet said it was an effective way of operating the fleet while “building additional resilience and flexibility” into the airline’s operations.
Flights would still meet Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) regulations on the required number of cabin crew, which is based on the number of physical seats, rather than passengers on board.
Airlines and airports in the UK have been struggling with staff shortages since Easter, as demand for travel has taken off again, following the removal of all remaining UK Covid travel restrictions.
EasyJet and BA were forced to cut hundreds of flights last month as levels of the virus surged, keeping staff off work, and making it hard to maintain full schedules. Many airlines, including EasyJet, are hiring new cabin crew to replace staff made redundant during the pandemic. But experts are predicting staffing difficulties will continue for up to 12 months.
In the meantime EasyJet said the scheme to limit passenger numbers on the A319 will allow the airline to operate with more certainty. The change in capacity was very small as a proportion of overall summer season passenger numbers, it added.
EasyJet said it had looked at a range of measures to strengthen its operational resilience. As well as the scheme to remove seats the company will also put more resources into processing the accreditation of new staff.
EasyJet said it expects to be “near” 2019 levels of flying this summer. Pre-pandemic EasyJet flew almost 300 000 passengers every day during peak season. Julia Lo Bue-Said from the Advantage Travel Partnership, UK’s largest independent travel agent group, said the “dire labour shortage” in the sector was one of many factors affecting the travel industry following two years of disruption. – BBC News.
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