Airline operators have warned that Nigerian domestic airlines may cease operations on Thursday, April 30, 2026.
Operators cited what they describe as intolerable and unsustainable aviation fuel prices—a move that has raised fresh concerns about widespread travel disruption nationwide.
Industry insiders said the airlines may halt flights by Thursday after they failed to reach an agreement with the Federal Government and oil marketers.
The impending suspension comes following multiple complaints from operators who have seen the price of Jet A1 increase by more than 300% from February, driving up operational expenses.
There is currently uncertainty for passengers, many of whom depend on domestic flights for urgent and business trips.
FG Approves 30% Cut
Aviation Minister, Festus Keyamo
Festus Keyamo, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, met with fuel marketers and airline operators in Abuja last week in an attempt to prevent the issue.
However, findings show that operators stalled the tripartite negotiations by refusing to shift their positions until significant action was taken.
In an attempt to lessen the burden on airlines, the minister announced a 30% cut in aviation-related taxes at the conclusion of the two-day meeting. Although the gesture was acknowledged, operators maintain that it does not solve the underlying issue.
At the end of the second day of the meeting, Alex Onyema issued a seven-day ultimatum, effective from midnight last Thursday, for action to be taken.
He said, “Since the advent of the US-Iran war, there has been a spike in aviation fuel in Nigeria, which we, the Airline Operators of Nigeria, feel is not proportionate to the hike internationally.
Allen Onyema.
“We expect that in the next 48 hours something drastic should be done because no airline will fly in this country in the next seven days if nothing is done, not because they don’t want to fly, but because fuel may not be available to us at sustainable pricing.”
The AOE vice president further explained that petrol costs have surged from roughly N900 per litre before to the crisis to between N2,700 and N2,900, with some merchants selling as high as N3,500.
In a letter dated April 14, 2026, to Mr. Clement Isong, Executive Secretary of the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN), that the price of aviation fuel has increased by more than 300 percent in a matter of weeks.
AON further decried that airlines have continued to absorb the rising costs for over four weeks out of “patriotism and in the spirit of service to the nation.”
