The Aviation Ground Handling Association of Nigeria has warned that the N9bn debt owed by domestic airlines to ground handling companies could rise to N18bn by December if urgent steps are not taken to address the situation.
Chairman of AGHAN, Olaniyi Adigun, disclosed this to The PUNCH while explaining why the association issued a strike notice to airlines before suspending the planned action following the intervention of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority.
“I don’t see how we can survive with N9bn debt in May; by December it would be N18bn, so we have to stop it,” Adigun said.
He noted that the association initially gave the airlines a seven-day ultimatum before extending it by an additional three days. “After the seven-day ultimatum, we gave them an additional three days, which ended,” he stated.
According to him, the Airline Operators of Nigeria later requested dialogue with the association, while the NCAA invited both parties to a meeting aimed at resolving the dispute.
“The AON wrote to us to have a dialogue with them. Of course, we know their tactics. However, the NCAA wrote to us and has called both parties to a roundtable meeting on how to mitigate the indebtedness and the way forward,” he said.
Adigun explained that the planned strike was suspended because of the NCAA’s intervention and ongoing discussions. “So, in view of the NCAA’s intervention, we had to stop the strike. And then we plan to have a meeting on Tuesday. By Tuesday, we will be able to reach a comfortable zone,” he added.
The AGHAN chairman stressed that the association was not interested in disrupting flight operations but was focused on recovering debts owed to its members. “We obliged them. Our idea is not to disrupt operations or cause inconveniences; our idea is to get our money back. That’s the essence of it,” he stated.
He also expressed concern that some airlines could shut down while still indebted to service providers. “Most of all these airlines, if they go down, the money goes down with them. Look at Air Nigeria; it owes most of our members money. Even Dana Air, too,” Adigun said.
He further called for a binding agreement between airlines and ground handling firms, welcoming the NCAA’s involvement in the matter. “So it’s better for us to have an agreement that is binding, so if the NCAA wants to mediate, they are welcome,” he said.
Reacting to claims by airlines that the timing of the demand was inappropriate, Adigun argued that operators continued to generate revenue from passengers while relying on services provided by ground handlers.
“The airlines are saying it’s the wrong timing, but they are collecting the ticket money, and we should die. Are they not consuming the services? Are the tickets free? It’s an ecosystem; all of us are in business. How come international carriers are not owing? When we get to the NCAA, we will resolve it,” he added.
This comes after an earlier report by The PUNCH that tension was mounting in the aviation sector following threats by ground handling companies to suspend services over more than N9bn owed by domestic airlines, sparking concerns over possible flight disruptions nationwide.
The ground handlers, operating under the aegis of AGHAN, had issued a seven-day ultimatum to the airlines, warning that failure to clear the debts could lead to the withdrawal of key handling services required for flight operations.
According to the association, the prolonged indebtedness had continued to put pressure on the finances and operations of its members, despite several attempts to recover the outstanding payments from the airlines.
