The acting director general of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Capt. Chris Najomo, has confirmed that the capacity gap was responsible for an increase in airfare by local airline operators in the country.
Speaking over the weekend when the President, National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA),Yinka Folami, and member of his Executive Council paid him a courtesy visit to his office in Abuja, said to bring down air fare, Nigeria needs to bridge current capacity gaps in the sector
According to him, these gaps bring down the fares and encourage best global services operations by encouraging more investors and investments in the domestic airline market.
“We are happy to have NANTA with us, and honestly, it is not easy to provide leadership at this critical point in time, but we commend your association for staying strong and supportive to the changes in the sector even before the coming of this administration.
“Our minister has taken note of your concerns for the sector and has reached out to Boeing, Emberar, and Airbus to support investors in the domestic air business to close the gaps on capacity to meet with surging local passengers traffic and to also enable more Nigerian flag carriers on international routes,” Najomo stated.
On the enforcement of noticeable infractions in the sector, the NCAA boss reiterated the determination of the aviation regulatory body to do the needful where necessary.
He, however, added that offenders will be tracked and punished according to extant regulations and in partnership with sister regulatory agencies like the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC).
Moreso, the NCAA acting DG, consented to a Sector Monitoring Committee made up of representatives of NCAA, FCCPC, and NANTA.
Speaking earlier, the NANTA president, Folami, noted that the NCAA has lived up to its operational responsibilities and has the approval, confidence, and support of NANTA.
“We appreciate your capacity and technical experience to bring sanity to the sector. In strengthening our association, we look forward to an equitable and fair play ecosystem. We also want to work closer with you and other government regulatory bodies to help address the challenges in the sector and align it to global best practices.
“Indeed, we have confidence in the NCAA under your watch, and together, we can put a halt to the many underhand practices such as cross-border trading and other obnoxious trade practices in the sector.
“We also want to drive the best of the Consumerism Ecosystem, which will help protect the Nigerian travelling public and also help service providers to remain in business,” the NANTA president explained.