The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has stated that it has not increased landing and parking charges for domestic and international airline companies operating in Nigeria.
This was disclosed in a press briefing by Capt. Rabiu Yadudu, Managing Director, FAAN, on Monday in Ikeja while speaking with journalists, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.
The FAAN chief was responding to media reports that the Authority had increased charges for airline operators, stating they had zero plans to do so.
What FAAN is saying
Yadudu said a media report that FAAN had increased charges for airline operators was false, and it was not in the immediate plan of the agency to do so.
- “The report is wrong and misleading; FAAN has not increased landing and parking charges.
- “We have not increased landing and parking charges for international airline operators since 2002 and that was when tickets were going for N300,000, not now that they are going for thousands of dollars.
- “Domestic land and parking was last reviewed in 2012 when tickets were being sold for N6000; now tickets are being sold for N100,000.
- “Actually, there are more than enough reasons for FAAN to increase, because in 2012 tickets were going for between N6000 and N7000, and we have not reviewed since.
- “It is important to caution that we need to be careful with what we read and those sending out the news should always cross check their facts.
- “We do not enjoy coming out to refute disinformation, we do not enjoy it at all. The fact remains that we have not increased our charges and we do not plan to do it this year,” he said.
He added that if FAAN planned to increase fares, the operators would be told, acknowledging that the new MMIA terminal was part of the Federal Government’s efforts to reposition the aviation sector and make passengers enjoy exciting travelling experience.
NCAA also wades in
Meanwhile, Capt. Musa Nuhu, Director-General, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), also said he is not aware of any new charges, citing he has not authorised any increase in charges.
- “The last time NCAA reviewed charges was 10 years ago because NCAA operates on a policy of costs recovery.
- “We don’t charge people to make profits; what we charge is what we spend in providing services. That is what we charge to recover for those services.
- “And you can imagine if you are charging N5,000 ten years ago, calculate the inflationary pressure and the devaluation of the naira, we are actually recovering costs, we are providing services to the industry at subsidised rate,” he said.
He added that there was need to consider the review of the existing charges as the agency was in need of resources to continue to provide services, as the NCAA depended on the revenue it was generating, and not the government, to provide services.
In case you missed it
- Nairametrics reported yesterday that the Federal Government said that the newly completed Terminal 2 of the Murtala Mohammed International Airport in Lagos has the capacity to process 14 million passengers every year.
- This was made known by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, during an inspection tour of the new airport terminal with some journalists and the Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Capt. Rabiu Yadudu.
- He said that the new terminal has created more than 10,000 direct and indirect jobs, adding that the construction of similar airport projects in Abuja, Port–Harcourt, Enugu and Kano, is reflective of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in infrastructural development.
