Nigerian airlines have accumulated more than N60bn in loans from local banks to finance aviation fuel purchases as the high cost of Jet A1 continues to threaten the survival of operators, the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) has disclosed.
A member of the AON Board of Trustees, Roland Iyayi, told Sunday PUNCH that some airlines were borrowing heavily to keep their operations running, despite making little or no profit.
“There are some airlines that are owing over N60bn from local banks just to be able to procure fuel. That’s how bad it is,” Iyayi said.
He blamed the situation on the failure of the government to implement recommendations made by stakeholders after airlines threatened to suspend operations in February following a sharp increase in aviation fuel prices.
According to him, a committee comprising the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, fuel marketers and airline operators was set up after intervention by Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo. However, he said the recommendations of the committee had yet to produce meaningful action.
Iyayi said aviation fuel remained significantly more expensive in Nigeria than in other parts of the world, forcing airlines to divert most of their ticket revenue to fuel purchases.
He added that the financial strain had affected the airlines’ ability to remit the statutory five per cent ticket sales charge to the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA).
“Airlines are not able to mark up the ticket fares in such a way as to make up for the escalated fuel price,” he said, noting that operators were maintaining relatively low fares to keep flying despite operating losses.
Public Relations Officer of United Nigeria Airlines, Chibuike Uloka, similarly said Jet A1 accounts for about 50 per cent of the airline’s revenue, leaving little money for salaries, aircraft maintenance, taxes and other expenses.
Uloka also cited multiple taxes as another major burden on operators, saying the industry was operating under extremely high costs.
The AON had earlier sought government intervention over historical debts owed by airlines, particularly debts attributed to carriers that are no longer operating. Iyayi said the request for a complete write-off of such historical debts had been misunderstood as a demand for a 30 per cent reduction in current debts.
The Federal Government had announced a 30 per cent relief on airlines’ debts to aviation agencies and directed discussions between airlines, fuel marketers and regulators on the pricing of Jet A1.
However, the measures have failed to fully resolve the crisis. The situation worsened after Jet A1 reportedly rose from about N900 per litre on February 28 to N3,300 in April 2026, amid a global fuel-price shock linked to the Iran conflict.
With fuel accounting for a substantial portion of airline operating costs, operators warn that continued high prices could further deepen their debts and threaten the stability of domestic air travel.
