Aviation
Airfare increase: FG probes domestic airlines
The Federal Government has begun investigations into the latest increase in airfares by domestic airlines and the alleged collusion by the airlines in the fare fixing arrangement.
Price-fixing is a practice whereby rival companies come to an illicit agreement not to sell goods or services below a certain price.
A report by The Punch indicated that efforts are currently ongoing to unravel reasons for the sudden hike in airfares by all domestic carriers, as the airlines, aside from Green Africa Airways, raised the airfare for a one-hour flight in economy class to as high as N50,000.
This amounts to over 60 per cent hike in the domestic airfare, as the rate was hitherto between N26,000 and N30,000 a few weeks ago.
It quoted an email allegedly sent by a domestic carrier to its travel agents stating that all airlines had effected the same increase in airfares.
This is said to be suggestive of a unanimous decision by domestic carriers to engage in price fixing.
The email read in part, “This is to update you that effective today, February 18, 2022, the airline’s ticket fares have been reviewed with the least fare at N50.000 only across all our routes.
“This has become necessary in view of the current hike in prices of aviation related materials, services, and exchange rate.
“It is worth noting that all other airlines have also effected same fare increase. We crave your understanding and support to sell our stated fares.”
Executive Vice-Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, Babatunde Irukera, said the FCCPC was aware of the latest concern in the aviation sector.
He was quoted as saying the commission had commenced investigations into the issues raised by both passengers and other concerned observers in the aviation sector.
He said, “We’ve been engaging the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority on that. Firstly, it is against the law for competitors to coordinate and come together to discuss or agree on price. That is forming a cartel.
“But an announcement in itself will not be sufficient evidence of the cartel. You need to investigate and discover if there is such cartel. Now the articles we’ve read seem to suggest that they agreed as an airline association. But we haven’t seen an evidence of that.
“And because cartel is criminal and will involve monetary penalties, it requires evidence to clear every doubt. So we need to find the evidence if that’s what happened, for instance, one airline has said to us, ‘no, we were never part of any announcement’.”
Irukera added, “They said others increased airfares and they saw an opportunity to increase their own, which was part of market forces. So it is now for us to gather the evidence to narrow it down to a violation of law, to at least show that it was a coordinated conduct.”
He said the commission would issue a public statement on the development soon, adding that the FCCPC was currently “gathering evidence to see at what point in their systems did the airlines changed their fares.”
Irukera said, “This is to see if there was any coordination or if was a response to what another airline did or not. So the short answer to this is that any coordinated conduct or agreement with respect to price among competitors is a violation of law and the FCCPC strongly rejects that and will pursue it.
“However, in this case we are gathering information at this point to find the evidence or the lack thereof.”
Aviation
FG suspends Dana Air for comprehensive audit
FG suspends Dana Air for comprehensive audit
The Federal Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development has ordered the suspension of Dana Air flight operations.
This came about 24 hours after the airline’s runway excursion incident at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.
The directive was passed on Wednesday to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority to be effected.
A letter signed by the ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr Emmanuel Meribole, addressed to the NCAA said recent incidents involving Dana Air had raised concerns about the safety and financial viability of the airline’s operations.
It said the suspension would not be lifted until comprehensive audits on the Dana Air’s fleet had been conducted.
It stated that the audit would include safety protocols, maintenance procedures and financial health.
It stressed that the move to suspend the airline was aimed at ensuring the safety and well-being of Nigerians.
The statement reads, “As the supervisor overseeing our nation’s aviation safety and regulatory compliance, it has come to the Honourable Minister’s attention that recent incidents involving Dana Airline have raised serious concerns regarding both the safety and financial viability of their operations.
“In light of these incidents and with the paramount priority being the safety and well-being of our citizens and travelers, the Honourable Minister has directed that you immediately initiate the suspension of Dana Airline’s fleet until a comprehensive audit can be conducted. This audit should encompass all aspects of safety protocols, maintenance procedures, and financial health to ensure full compliance with our aviation regulations.
“The recent incidents have underscored the urgency of this matter, and it is imperative that swift and decisive action be taken to safeguard the interests of all stakeholders involved.”
Aviation
Dana Air grounds plane after runway incident, 83 passengers on board
Dana Air grounds plane after runway incident, 83 passengers on board
Dana Air says it has grounded its airplane that skidded off the Lagos airport runway on Tuesday.
The affected aircraft, a McDonald Douglas (MD-83) with registration 5N-BKI, had 83 passengers on board, it added.
Spokesman for the airline, Mr Kingsley Ezenwa, however, said all the 83 passengers and crew onboard the flight disembarked safely without injuries.
He said in a statement that the airline decided to ground the plane to allow for proper investigation into what caused the accident.
The statement read in part, “Dana Air regrets to inform the public of a runway incursion involving one of our aircraft, registration number 5N BKI, which was flying from Abuja to Lagos today, 23/04/24.
“We are relieved to confirm that all 83 passengers and crew onboard the flight disembarked safely without injuries or scare as the crew handled the situation with utmost professionalism.
“We have also updated the Accident Investigation Bureau, AIB, and Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) on the incident, and the aircraft involved has been grounded by our maintenance team for further investigation.
“We wish to thank the airport authorities, our crew for their very swift response in ensuring the safe disembarkation of all passengers following the incident, and our sincere apologies and appreciation to the passengers on the affected flight for their patience and understanding.”
Aviation
Just in: Panic as Dana Air plane skids off Lagos airport runway
Just in: Panic as Dana Air plane skids off Lagos airport runway
Tragedy was averted on Tuesday as a Dana Air plane skidded off the Lagos airport runway.
Although it was not immediately clear why the pilot lost control, causing the plane skid off the runway, Newstrends learnt that the incident led to the diversion of other flights to the international wing of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos.
In a post by X user, BelemaMhart — who boarded another airline — it was stated that there were no casualties.
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