As the hardship in the country persists with the prize of everything quadrupling, aviation fuel, which sold for N190/litre and later N360/litre in January this year, has risen to between N579 and N607/litre on Tuesday. Oil marketers as well as airport officials said the cost of aviation fuel differed in various airports.
In Lagos, Jet A1 was sold for N579 per litre on Tuesday; Abuja N599, Port-Harcourt N599; and Kano N607. Just a few weeks ago, aviation fuel marketers increased Jet A1 to about N450 per litre which forced the carriers to raise airfares by 100 percent. The latest hike in aviation fuel led to scarcity of the product, a development that forced virtually all the carriers to reschedule flights while others who could not get Jet A1 cancelled flights.
The domestic terminals of the Lagos and Abuja airports, as well other airports across the country were full as restless passengers besieged airline check-in counters. Several passengers became stranded. The Chief Operating Officer of Ibom Air, Mr George Uriese, decried the situation, saying the latest increase in Jet A1 price had put domestic carriers in a very tight situation.
According to him, airlines may find it difficult to raise fares because passengers have got to a limit where they may be unwilling to pay more. He said, “Something has to give way at this time, which I don’t know.” He felt perhaps airlines might be forced to change their business models if the situation persisted.
