N1,100 Per Dollar: Nigerian Airlines Sell Cheap Ticket to Combat High Operating Expenses

• Nigerian airlines have opened more seats to travelers amid FX crisis and inflation
• It said this would enable the airlines to cope with the increasing costs in Nigeria
• This became necessary to get more revenue and remain in the business

Domestic airlines have raised the number of aircraft seats as part of initiatives to combat high operating expenses in the aviation sector, enabling more people to commute and boosting revenue.

This is amid reports that the naira sells for N1,100 per dollar in the parallel market.

A coping mechanism for increasing cost

Susan Akporiaye, President of the National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies, addressed the impact of the lack of foreign currency.

According to Punch's report, she said the new development was one of the coping mechanisms used by airline owners to expand the capacity of their airlines in the face of declining revenue.

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She said that the lower seats would increase the average number of passengers every departure and reduce per-seat expenses despite being less expensive.

She said:

Nothing has changed in the operating costs yet due to the fluctuating exchange rate, which is affecting our operating costs. The only thing that has changed is that airlines are beginning to release the lower seats now. Some of them have started releasing lower seats.

Earlier, the airlines stopped selling off all the cheap classes and were only selling the expensive ones. The airlines had cut off all the cheap seats and were selling only the expensive ones because of the trapped fund issue but now that the rate of exchange is high. Most of them are releasing cheap seats to get more revenue to remain afloat in the business.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that the cost of domestic flights in Nigeria may rise from N70,000 to between N150,000 and N250,000, depending on the route and flight duration due to foreign exchange challenges and the soaring maintenance cost.

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According to Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), the current price instability in the cost of operations could cause the price of flight tickets on the Lagos-Abuja route to be priced at N250,000, Legit.ng reported.

Obiora Okonkwo, the spokesperson for AON, revealed this recently during a television interview as he addressed the challenges in Nigeria's aviation industry.

The price of economy class tickets on the Lagos-Abuja flight is sold as low as N51,000 and as high as N91,000, depending on the airline.

Source: Legit.ng