Pilots and Engineers under the auspices of the National Association of Aircrafts Pilots and Engineers (NAAPE) has asked the federal government to intervene in the current fuel scarcity as stakeholders predict price of the product may further increase to N700 per litre.
The price of aviation fuel, which ranged from N230 to N250 per litre across different states in the country last year, rose this week to N590 in Lagos; N599 in Abuja and Port Harcourt; and N625 in Kano.
An operator who craved anonymity said the marketers predict that the price of the product is expected to rise to N700 per litre before the weekend.
In a statement by Abednego Galadima, NAAPE President, he said it observed that the hike in price of aviation fuel in the country and the scarcity of the products is capable of crippling domestic operators and by extension, the Nigerian aviation industry.
Galadima said the association is very worried about this issue as it has made traveling very difficult for passengers and caused much disruption in the operations of domestic airlines.
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“The industry is still recovering from the negative impact of the pandemic and many airlines haven’t completely recovered. If this issue of scarcity is not immediately addressed by the Federal Government, not only would the airlines be negatively impacted, the ripple effect will be felt in the aviation downstream sector which may lead to job losses.
“It has been reported that the House of Representatives will convene a meeting of industry stakeholders with a view to solving the issue. But we don’t want it to stop at that,” he explained.
He said the executive arm of government, should as a matter of urgency, address the issues causing the scarcity and price hike so that normalcy can return to the industry.
