Chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, has said Nigerian airlines are operating on extremely thin margins, with none of the country’s carriers making as much as $1 million in profit in 2025.
Onyema spoke on Thursday at the 30th anniversary conference of the League of Aviation Correspondents (LAAC) in Lagos, where stakeholders discussed the financial sustainability of the aviation industry.
The conference, themed, “Towards a Sustainable Aviation Industry: Balancing Government Revenue Demands with Sector Growth,” focused on the impact of taxes, regulatory charges and other costs on airlines and the wider aviation ecosystem.
Speaking against the backdrop of complaints over soaring airfares, Onyema said the high cost of air tickets should not be interpreted as evidence that airlines were making substantial profits.
He said the industry was weighed down by a combination of aviation fuel costs, taxes, airport charges, regulatory fees and other operational expenses.
“No airline made $1m in profit. Yes, if Air Peace is the biggest carrier in revenue as well, and did not make $1m in 2025, then I don’t think there is any other airline that may make such money,” he said.
Onyema argued that the government should adopt a broader approach to aviation revenue, saying airlines contribute to the economy indirectly by stimulating tourism, trade, employment and economic integration.
“You don’t use airlines per se to raise revenue for the nation. Airlines are not used to raise revenue directly, but indirectly. They energise the ecosystem for the government to make money through tourism, economic integration and so many other things,” he said.
Data cited at the conference showed that the aviation sector contributes about $2.5 billion annually to Nigeria’s GDP and supports more than 217,000 jobs.
However, operators said the sector faces a heavy fiscal burden, with numerous taxes and charges imposed by various government and aviation agencies.
According to Onyema, at least six charges are directly reflected in passengers’ tickets, including passenger service charges, terminal facility charges, ticket sales charges, excess baggage charges and security levies.
He called for the abolition of the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge and Cargo Sales Charge, proposing instead the adoption of a fixed unit charge that would be less burdensome for airlines.
The Air Peace chairman also advocated the harmonisation of aviation taxes and levies to address overlapping charges and double taxation.
Supporting the call for a more sustainable operating environment, the Chairman of Bi-Courtney Aviation Services, Olalekan Babalakin, said the development of the Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal 2 demonstrated the role private capital could play in expanding aviation infrastructure.
Babalakin, represented by the company’s Acting Chief Operating Officer, Remi Jibodu, said government revenue generation and industry development should be pursued together.
“Government revenue and industry growth should not be viewed as competing objectives. A thriving aviation industry ultimately creates a stronger and more sustainable revenue base for the government,” Jibodu said.
He urged the government to ensure policy consistency and contractual certainty while creating conditions that would encourage long-term private investment in airport infrastructure.
Onyema further stressed that the government should prioritise the long-term growth and profitability of the aviation sector rather than focusing solely on immediate revenue collection.
“It is profitability that will sustain their existence and also sustain and grow air travel in Nigeria,” he said.
The LAAC Chairman, Idris Suleiman, called for stronger consultation among government authorities, aviation agencies, airlines, airport operators, labour and investors before major fiscal and regulatory policies were introduced.
He said the central issue was determining “how much revenue can the sector reasonably bear without undermining its capacity to grow.”
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