The Director-General of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), Umar Farouk, has declared that the N11,000 charge imposed on airlines per flight is no longer sustainable in the face of Nigeria’s current economic realities.
Farouk made the remarks on Tuesday in Abuja during a stakeholders’ summit organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Aviation.
The summit, themed “Emerging Trends in Global Aviation: Sustainability, Technology and Digital Transformation,” brought together key players in the sector to discuss challenges and reforms.
Explaining the situation, Farouk noted that the N11,000 fee, introduced in 2008, applies to an entire flight regardless of the number of passengers.
“In 2008, we charged N11,000 per flight—for instance, from Lagos to Abuja. It’s not per passenger, it’s for the whole flight,” he said. “Today, economic tickets range between N150,000 and N200,000, yet we are still collecting the same N11,000. This is no longer realistic.”
The NAMA boss stressed that as a cost recovery agency, the organisation is mandated to recoup investments made in critical aviation infrastructure, including landing, surveillance, and communication systems.
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He lamented that while the agency has continued to modernise to meet international standards, airlines have resisted calls for a review of charges.
“We are not a charity organisation,” Farouk maintained. “The airlines have been adjusting to economic conditions in their fares, but they do not want to acknowledge that we also operate in the same market and incur costs. Safety should not be compromised because they want to keep paying peanuts.”
He further revealed that NAMA had engaged airlines on several occasions to justify the need for an upward review, but progress has been slow.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Committee on Aviation, Abdullahi Garba—represented by his deputy, Festus Akingbaso—described the retreat as a necessary step in strengthening collaboration between lawmakers and stakeholders.
He said the committee’s priority was to drive reforms that would enhance aviation safety, infrastructure, and regulatory compliance.