Airfares drop as foreign airlines announce new ticket prices after Air Peace begins London flight

Foreign airlines in Nigeria have started to unblock their low-priced tickets on Nigerian routes following the completion of the payment of about $7 billion backlog by the Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN), including the $700 million reportedly belonging to foreign airlines.

The apex bank said two weeks ago that it had completed the payment for verified FX claims of about $7 billion in debt, including forex forward contracts among foreign exchange-denominated debts.

The bank said that about $2.4 billion of the $7 billion debt was invalid, stating that the amount could not be verified due to improper documentation.

Punch reports that the International Air Transport Association (IATA) is yet to verify the clearance of the $700 million, asking the CBN to show proof.

To recoup the losses caused by the trapped funds, the foreign carriers blocked their low-priced tickets on Nigerian routes after ticket revenue ran into hundreds of dollars and was trapped in the country.

Checks show that foreign airlines, including British Airways and Delta Airlines, have begun unlocking their low-priced tickets.

Experts believe that the development led to a sharp rise in fares on the Nigerian routes, worsened by the depreciation of the Nigerian currency, the naira against the dollar.

Foreign airlines announce new tickets

Reports say economy class on popular routes sold for as high as N3 million on the Lagos-London-Lagos routes.

As of March 4, 2024, a round-trip economy class ticket from Lagos to London was sold for higher prices.

Air France sold the tickets for the Lagos-London routes at N2,482.138, Lufthansa sold tickets for the same route at N1,966.165, Qatar Airways gave the same ticket for N2,016.824, and KLM sold it for N2,448,740.

However, on March 30, 2024, the airlines announced a reduction in their tickets at N1,457,495.67, showing a decrease from the prices observed on March 4, 2024, which were sold for N2,578.466.75.

As one of Nigeria’s biggest carriers, Air Peace successfully commenced flights to London on March 30, 2024.

Air Peace announced the commencement of the flight on its X page, saying the development marks a milestone for the airline.

Air passengers react as airlines quote new fares

Legit.ng earlier reported that airline operators in Nigeria are going through hard times following the drop in domestic passengers, with airport terminals across Nigeria almost empty.

The development is attributed to the hike in the prices of air tickets, with the Lagos-Abuja return flight costing over N400,000.

The current price represents a more than 300% rise in two years as a one-way ticker for the Lagos-Abuja flight, which was quoted at N50,000.