Chief executive officer (CEO) of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, has attributed the delays and outright cancellations of domestic flights to rising cost of jet fuel and lack of parking spaces at the airports.
He made this known when airline operators appearing before the senate committee on aviation on Wednesday.
Onyema, who spoke on behalf of aircraft operators, said marketers keep increasing the price of fuel, which in turn increase their operational cost.
“Apart from the fact that the shortage of Jet A-1 is crippling our operations, the marketers have been increasing the price of the product consistently in the recent past to an unbearable point,” the Air Peace CEO said.
“As of April this year, Jet A-1 fuel was being sold for about N230 a litre. About a month ago in May, the price jumped to between N250 to N255.
“Today, the price has skyrocketed to an average of N280 to N300 a litre depending if you are buying in Lagos or Abuja. This has greatly increased our operational cost.”
He explained that the early morning rush also contributed to the delays or cancellation of flights due to the airports’ limited parking space.
“Some passengers should be prosecuted for their “unruly behaviour”, the Air Peace CEO added.
On his part, chairman of the aviation committee, Smart Adeyemi, said lawmakers had expressed concerns about the safety measures put in place by the authorities across the country and that rhe meeting was to seek solutions the challenge of delayed and cancelled flights.
