Again, NCAA, experts disagree over N502.4 billion ticket sales

• Our figures accurate-Agency

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has maintained that there is no falsification or under declaration of N505 billion air tickets sold for 2017, saying it reaffirmed the sanctity of the recently released statistical data on the aviation industry.

Experts including a former Commandant, Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos and aviation consultant, Group Capt. John Ojikutu (Rtd) had picked holes with the figure released by the aviation regulatory body, saying figures available to them shows that tickets sold for 2017 should not be less than N600 billion.

Ojikutu described it as ‘another contradiction similar to the reports of 2014 and 2015.”

Ojikutu stated that while one might agree with the NCAA team that not all those who bought tickets could have used it within the reviewed periods and others could have changed their travelling plans and got their fares refunded, he said what is very clear is that the passengers recorded by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) are known as those who passed through the passengers access control and screening point into the aircraft.

His words: “Therefore, the harmonised figures given by NCAA are deemed to have utilised or expended their purchased tickets.

“The approximately four million international passengers and 10 million domestic passengers are those who bought tickets and have expended their purchased tickets.

“Let us give considerations of about 10 per cent for whatever concessions the airlines and NCAA would want us to consider from about two million outbound passengers, that gives us 1.8 million passengers to consider; let us not factor the fares of the First and Buisness Class passengers but assume that all passengers pay same fare of about N350,000 per passenger; the figure you get in any of the two years cannot be less than N650bn as earnings on the international passengers not N411bn or N501 billion provided by NCAA for 2016 and 2017 respectively.”

He explained that similarly, if each of the five million outbound domestic passengers paid N18,000 without factoring the Business Class passenger fares, to him, the earnings cannot be less but over N90 billion.

To him, the total tickets sales earnings for each of the years can therefore not be less than N740 billion and NCAA’s five per cent tickets sales charges for each of the year cannot be less than N37 billion.

This had sparked debate in the sector with parties holding on to their positions on what the actual figures should be.

But the NCAA, through its spokesman, Mr. Sam Adurogboye disclosed that the figures are verifiable and no amount of push and shove can cast aspersion on our figures.

He added that the system and processes of generating and gathering data are in line with best practices and international standards.

He urged stakeholders and the public to resist all attempts to create confusion and cast doubts on the figures, stressing that this is clearly a result of “crass ignorance and the purveyors being too clever by half”.

He explained that the process of generating data is as stipulated in the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (Nig.CARs) 2015 Part 18.12.5. “all domestic and international airlines operating in Nigeria shall forward to the Authority through an electronic platform provided by the Authority, all relevant documents such as flown coupons, passenger or cargo manifests, air waybills, load sheets, clients’ service invoices and other documents necessary for accurate billing within forty-eight (48) hours after each flight.”

In addition, he noted as part of the billing requirements, the authority collects billable data from airlines, photocopy of flown coupons and Post Departure Manifest (PDM) of international flight operations, adding that all these are International Air Transport Association (IATA) documents which NCAA cannot influence.

“The Flown Coupons contain specific information required by IATA before billings are done and issued. These are Ticket Number, Name of Passenger, Ticket Sales Charge (NG) etc. It is noteworthy that the prerequisite NCAA 5% TSC paid by passengers is indicated on the ticket. These data are warehoused by NCAA and can be verified”.

“The domestic billing process requires the airline to submit to the Authority its Passenger Departure Manifest (PDM) immediately after every flight departure. It is from the filed fares that 5% TSC is calculated. The Automated Integrated System therefore ensures authenticity between NCAA server and airlines”.

“Similarly, the process of billing 5% Cargo Sales Charge (CSC) requires the airline to submit Airway bill in accordance to the Nig.CARs.The weight and rate stated on the Airway bill is used in the calculation of the CSC”.

“However, it is pertinent to state that the statistics available for 5% CSC is not the same as the harmonised figures. Cargo data captures the total weight of the cargo (import and export) while NCAA chargeable weight is on export cargo only. Please note that foreign airlines with Bilateral Air Service Agreement (BASA) do not pay royalty on cargo airlift, though the cargo weights are captured but not billable”.

The authority, according to Adurogboye authenticates the automated data output with the hard copy data submitted by the airlines, noting that this serves as verification and determination of the actual flown passengers.

The following categories are non revenue passengers and are therefore exempted from 5% TSC calculation. These are Diplomats, Infants less than 2(two) years. Those whose journeys do not originate from Nigeria (ticket sold offshore).

In ticket sales there are promotional, discounted, staff and low season’s fares. It is the aggregate of these that mischief makers sum up and begin to tout figures.

Wole Shadare