NCAA Suspends 11 Airlines Over N12bn Debt, Then Backs Down Within 48 Hours

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) grounded 11 domestic airlines over unpaid charges totalling nearly N12 billion on Saturday, only to reverse itself two days later in a swift U-turn that laid bare the financial pressure squeezing Nigeria’s aviation industry.

What Happened

On May 22, the NCAA’s Director of Finance and Accounts, Olufemi Odukoya, signed an internal memo directing all directorates to stop providing regulatory and administrative services to 11 operators. The affected airlines were placed on a “No-Pay-No-Service” list and told no service would be rendered without financial clearance from the Directorate of Finance and Accounts.

The 11 airlines on the list: Air Peace, Ibom Air, Arik Air, United Nigeria Airlines, Umza Air, NG Eagle, Max Air, Caverton Helicopters, Overland Airways, Rano Air, and ValueJet.

The money at issue is the mandatory five per cent Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) and Cargo Sales Charge (CSC) — funds airlines collect on the NCAA’s behalf to fund safety oversight, training, and economic regulation. These are statutory obligations, not optional line items.

The Reversal

By Sunday, May 25, NCAA Director-General Chris Najomo had suspended the enforcement order, saying the decision followed consultations and a review of the challenges facing airline operators, especially the rising cost of aviation fuel.

“The suspension should not be interpreted as a cancellation, waiver, or forgiveness of airlines’ financial obligations,” Najomo said. “The affected airlines remain fully responsible for settling all outstanding statutory debts.”

He also disclosed that President Bola Tinubu had approved a 30 per cent discount on outstanding fees owed by domestic airlines to aviation agencies, including the NCAA, to cushion the impact of rising Jet A1 fuel prices.

Why It Matters

The speed of the reversal tells its own story. Nigeria’s carriers are grappling with surging Jet A1 costs, volatile exchange rates, and high maintenance bills. The combined debt of the 11 affected airlines sits at roughly N12 billion. Had the directive been enforced, regulatory services like aircraft certification, safety audits, and licence renewals could have been withheld from carriers that move millions of passengers monthly — right at the start of the Sallah travel rush.

Industry watchers had warned that strict enforcement risked grounding multiple airlines at once, stranding passengers nationwide. The debt itself, though, remains unresolved. Without a clear repayment framework, this standoff could flare up again once the suspension period ends.

Sources: BusinessDay, Daily Post, Gazette, Blueprint, TheNigeriaLawyer, CrispNG