No Nigerian airline made $1 million profit in 2025 – Allen Onyema
No Nigerian airline made $1 million in profit in 2025, according to Air Peace CEO Allen Onyema, who said high operating costs continue to leave local carriers with thin profit margins. The post No Nigerian airline made $1 million profit in 2025 – Allen Onyema appeared first on Nairametrics .
According to Air Peace CEO Allen Onyema, no Nigerian airline managed to achieve a $1 million profit in 2025. At the 30th annual conference of the League of Airport and Aviation Correspondents (LAAC) in Lagos, Onyema highlighted the significant financial pressures faced by local airlines. High operating costs, including expensive aviation fuel and numerous taxes, fees, and charges, have left airline profit margins thin.
Onyema noted that Air Peace, Nigeria's largest airline, could not make $1 million in profit that year and questioned whether any other Nigerian carrier succeeded in doing so. The direct operating cost of running an airline in Nigeria is approximately N180,000 per seat, with aviation fuel accounting for more than 40% of operating costs.
Airlines also face about 54 taxes, fees, and charges across various regulatory bodies, with these charges often included in passenger ticket prices. Onyema explained that these costs ultimately result in higher ticket prices, which can reduce passenger demand. He emphasized that the cycle of increased costs, higher fares, and weaker demand makes it difficult for airlines to generate sufficient profits to reinvest in their operations.
LAAC Chairman Suleiman Idris called for better collaboration between government, aviation agencies, airlines, airport operators, labor, and other stakeholders before making major fiscal and regulatory decisions affecting the industry. Idris advocated for meaningful consultation on charges such as the 5% Ticket Sales Charge, Cargo Sales Charge, and infrastructure development costs.
Onyema also advocated for the harmonization of aviation taxes and levies to eliminate multiple overlapping charges and suggested replacing the existing percentage-based system with a fixed unit cost per ticket. He argued that aviation should be viewed as an economic catalyst rather than just a source of government revenue, as a stronger industry supports tourism, trade, employment, and other sectors.
Written by urgent.news from Nairametrics's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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