Farouk Umar, director-general (DG) of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA), has called for an upward review of the N11,000 fee currently charged airlines per flight.
According to NAN, Umar spoke on Tuesday during a retreat themed “Emerging Trends in Global Aviation: Sustainability, Technology and Digital Transformation,” organised for members of the house committee on aviation in Abuja.
He said the charge, introduced in 2008, is no longer realistic given current economic conditions.
The NAMA boss said while the cost of air tickets has risen sharply over the years, the N11,000 rate has remained static despite continuous investments in technology.
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“In 2008, NAMA was collecting N11,000 per flight. For instance, from Lagos to Abuja, we charge N11,000 for the entire flight, not per passenger,” Umar said.
“At that time, an economy ticket cost about N16,000. Today, the same ticket is between N150,000 and N200,000, yet we are still collecting N11,000.
“We cannot continue this way; we keep modernising to meet global standards, but we are still being paid peanuts. The airlines know this but prefer to ignore the reality.”
He said the agency operates as a cost-recovery institution and has invested heavily in surveillance, landing, and communication systems to improve aviation safety.
The director-general added that several attempts to hold talks with airline operators on the matter have not yielded results.
Also speaking, Abdullahi Garba, chairman of the house of representatives committee on aviation, said the retreat was designed to strengthen collaboration in advancing Nigeria’s aviation sector.
Garba, represented by his deputy, Festus Akingbaso, said the exercise would improve participants’ understanding of airspace management and legislative oversight.
