Travel News
Airlines struggle as losses hit N150bn in two months - PUNCH
By Princess Etuk
Airline Operators of Nigeria have raised alarm over losing N150bn within two months, even as ground handling companies threaten further action over about N9bn in outstanding debts.
A member of the Board of Trustees of the Airline Operators of Nigeria, Roland Iyayi, said airlines had lost over N150bn in just two months, stressing that operators were nearing breaking point.
“Airlines have bled over N150bn in two months. Where is the money going to come from? It’s gotten to a point where nobody can threaten anybody any longer,” he said.
Iyayi warned that the survival of ground handling companies depends largely on the existence of airlines, adding that the current standoff could have dire consequences.
He said, “If airlines don’t exist, they don’t have a business. Nobody cares about the airlines; everybody wants to collect money. We’ve made up our minds now that whatever anybody wants to do, they can continue, but I can guarantee you that at the end of the day, everybody will come to their knees. You can’t force anybody to come up with what they don’t have.
So that’s where we are right now.”
He further cautioned that any disruption to airline operations would ultimately hurt all stakeholders in the sector. He added, “They threaten, the same way a few marketers are saying cash and carry. So let’s see what happens by the time airlines stop flying, whether they have any business.
“There’s no way airlines can do anything regarding any debt, simply because it has become very difficult to survive. Airlines are struggling to survive. So anybody threatening airlines now to say, ‘Oh, if you don’t pay up, we’ll cut services,’ without the airlines, you don’t have any business. So if you make it seem like you are doing the airlines a favour, no, it’s the other way around. Without the airlines, you can’t be where you are.
“What are we meeting for? To make promises we can’t keep? If anything at all, the airlines have to survive first before the ground handling companies can even have any future as a business,” he added.
However, the Chairman of the Aviation Ground Handling Association of Nigeria, Olaniyi Adigun, said the association was considering its next line of action in line with labour laws.
“What we intend to do is to come out with a press conference, and according to Nigerian law, we have our own strategy, which we are meeting together, and we are going to state our next move. Although some of them (airlines) have started, the majority have not. But that does not call off the strike,” he said.
Adigun added that the association might escalate its action if airlines fail to meet its demands within the stipulated timeframe.
“However, you know in the labour law, when you give a seven-day notice, and if you don’t meet up, you can give a three-day notice. So that’s the labour law; we are trying to look at that.
“But we have our minds set. We are just following the law. So after the expiration of seven days, if we don’t hear from them, we have our own strategy. We will be having a meeting on Thursday. So let’s wait for the outcome of the meeting,” he said.
Meanwhile, another member of the Airline Operators of Nigeria, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the lack of authorisation to speak on the matter, urged caution, warning that the timing of the dispute could worsen the country’s fragile economic situation.
“This is not even the right time for anybody to be attacking the airlines or for the people that are attacking each other, because this is a difficult time for them. So I don’t think this is the right time to do that. It’s a very sensitive period,” the source said.
The source warned that the collapse of airlines would trigger widespread consequences across the country. “As a nation, we cannot afford for our airlines to go down now because it’s going to create a lot of problems. There are a lot of problems we cannot afford. We’re in a very, very difficult position as a nation.
“If airlines go under, there will be an uproar in this country. So we have to be very careful. So I think the ground handlers will need to be patient and find a way to meet with the airlines, get into a dialogue because dialogue is the only way forward,” the source added.
The development follows an earlier report by The PUNCH that a fresh crisis was brewing in the aviation sector after ground handling companies threatened to suspend services over more than N9bn owed by domestic airlines, raising fears of widespread flight disruptions across the country.
The ground handlers, under the umbrella of the Aviation Ground Handlers Association of Nigeria, had issued a seven-day ultimatum to airline operators, warning that failure to settle the outstanding debts could force them to withdraw critical services essential to flight operations.
The association noted that the lingering indebtedness had placed significant financial strain on its members and affected their operational capacity, adding that repeated efforts to recover the funds had yielded little progress, with airlines’ payment commitments largely unmet.
UK airlines to group passengers from different flights on same day to save on jet fuel - EURONEWS
BY Dianne Apen-Sadler
The UK government is set to relax certain rules for airlines in a bid to protect summer holidays from disruption amid the fuel crisis.
While carriers in the country aren’t currently facing supply issues, the Department of Transport has said it hopes these changes will allow airlines to “plan realistically” and “lock in schedules earlier” so as to stop short-notice changes later down the line.
Airlines that operate multiple flights to the same destination on the same day will be able to consolidate schedules to reduce wasted fuel from flying planes which have not sold a significant proportion of tickets.
The UK government has also said that airlines will be able to hand back some of the ‘slots’ they are given to take off or land at airports without losing them.
Under current rules, carriers must use at least 80% of their allocated slots during a season to prevent them from being reassigned to other airlines. The practice hit the headlines during the COVID-19 pandemic, with thousands of ‘ghost flights’ operated.
“Since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the government has been monitoring jet fuel supplies daily and working with airlines, airports and fuel suppliers to stay ahead of any problems,” Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said.
“There are no immediate supply issues, but we’re preparing now to give families long-term certainty and avoid unnecessary disruption at the departure gate this summer.
“This legislation will give airlines the tools to adjust flights in good time if they need to, which helps protect passengers and businesses. We will do everything we can to insulate our country from the impact of the situation in the Middle East.”
Not everybody is happy about the proposed changes.
“Millions of Britons will have already booked their flights for this summer, often paying over the odds for flights at peak times,” Rory Boland, editor of consumer rights publication Which? Travel, said in a statement.
“Existing rules already allow airlines to move customers to new flights so long as they give them more than 14 days' notice and offer the choice between a new flight or a refund. It's only for cancellations within 14 days that compensation is payable, rightly.
“It's not fair for the rules to now be bent in favour of airlines and potentially leave passengers holding the bill. Many passengers will understand that disruptions can occur and may be happy to travel a few hours or a day later, but for those on short trips or connecting flights it could mean the trip is no longer worthwhile.
"Before any changes are made, passengers need cast-iron assurances that their rights will not be weakened and that airlines cannot use reform as cover to shift the cost of disruption onto travellers."
The UK has increased domestic jet fuel production in response to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz following the US-Israel attack on Iran. Jet fuel supply imports come to the UK from a number of countries not affected by the crisis, including the US.
Your rights on flights
For passengers in the UK, if your flight is cancelled by the airline you have the right to choose between a refund and being re-routed.
If your flight is delayed significantly – more than two hours on short-haul, three hours on medium-haul and four hours on long-haul – you are entitled to food and drink vouchers as well as overnight accommodation where necessary.
Rights are similar for EU countries, with passengers offered either a refund, a re-route to your destination at the earliest opportunity, or re-rerouting at a later date at your convenience, if your flight is cancelled.
You can find out more information about your rights within the EU on the Your Europe website.
UK airlines given green light to cancel or consolidate flights to conserve jet fuel - THE GUARDIAN UK
BY Helena Horton
UK airlines will be able to cancel or consolidate flights this summer to conserve jet fuel as the war in the Middle East continues to disrupt supplies.
The measures are being taken to avoid major disruption as Britons jet off on their summer holidays. Airlines are looking carefully at their timetables to see which flights can be cancelled in advance and cause the least delays.
New legislation would allow for actions such as consolidating schedules on routes where there are multiple flights to the same place on the same day, which could be put in place to stop last-minute cancellations, the government announced on Sunday.
The changes will allow airlines to give back a limited proportion of their allocated takeoff and landing slots without losing the right to operate them the following season. Usually, cancelling these puts airlines at risk of losing the slots, meaning sometimes they run half-empty planes in order to keep the right to use them.
Airlines will be cancelling flights well in advance if there is a jet fuel shortage, meaning passengers can be moved on to similar services.
If flights have not sold a significant proportion of tickets, these may also be cancelled in order to prevent wasting fuel from running near-empty planes, say ministers. Under the plans, flights will have to be cancelled at least two weeks in advance.
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Rob Bishton, the chief executive of the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said: “Relaxing the rules around slots at airports will allow airlines more flexibility and so we expect them to give passengers as much notice as possible of cancellations during this period.”
The plans were hatched at a meeting last Thursday between the transport secretary, Heidi Alexander, and representatives from Heathrow and Gatwick airports, British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and easyJet.
The strait of Hormuz, a key artery for oil and gas, has been closed in effect since the beginning of March, causing an energy crisis in many countries and leading European states to fear jet fuel shortages. According to some calculations, there are just a few weeks of jet fuel supplies left in Europe. The UK imports about 65% of the jet fuel it uses, much of which comes from the Middle East.
Alexander said: “There are no immediate supply issues, but we’re preparing now to give families long-term certainty and avoid unnecessary disruption at the departure gate this summer.
“This legislation will give airlines the tools to adjust flights in good time if they need to, which helps protect passengers and businesses. We will do everything we can to insulate our country from the impact of the situation in the Middle East.”
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