Allen Onyema, CEO of Air Peace, on Monday, warned that airfare might rise to about N120,000 if urgent actions are not taken to reduce the price of aviation fuel.

Mr Onyema who spoke on behalf of the Airline Operators Association of Nigeria (AOAN) at a parliamentary briefing on Monday called on President Muhammadu Buhari’s regime to grant operators permission to import the product to end the hike.

He argued that if airline companies can buy planes worth millions of dollars, they would have no trouble importing aviation fuel.

Lamenting that the cheapest flight ticket costs N70,000, Mr Onyema warned there would be further increase if efforts were not made to address the fuel crisis.

Responding to the airline operators’ request, the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, Mele Kyari, disclosed that plans were underway to issue airline operators licences to import aviation fuel.

It was agreed at a hearing attended by the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN) that the price of Jet-A1 be set at N500 per litre, down from N670 per litre.

Mr Onyema had said at the briefing that airline operators agreed to down tools until the fuel price returned to normal rate.

“We have only three more days, all airlines in Nigeria will shut down,” Mr Onyema said. “We are not threatening this country, it is a fact.”