Airline operators threaten shutdown as unions defend ₦15bn picketing action

In a communique issued by Nigerian airlines under the AON at the end of its general meeting held on September 23, 2026, at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, AON said it “views these acts as a gross violation of the rights of airlines to a safe and secure operational and business environment and a shameful, despicable and very disturbing development with grave implications for the aviation industry in Nigeria.

The group, quoting from the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Annex 17, defines ‘unlawful interference’ as “… acts or attempted acts such as to jeopardise the safety of civil aviation.

The airline body noted that, from the foregoing, the unfortunate events of August 11, 2026 were effectively a violation of aviation safety and security regulations with serious immediate and future local and global implications for the aviation sector in Nigeria.

AON condemns very seriously the recent upsurge in the use of unions to threaten, harass, and intimidate Nigerian airlines by certain quarters. It is illegal, unconstitutional, and above all, an aberration!”

The association recalled that “on Tuesday, August 11, 2026, a group of Nigerian aviation unions and others outside the aviation industry embarked on a violent disruptive action.

The disruptions occurred both at Murtala Muhammed Airport Terminal 1 (MMA1) and Terminal 2 (MMA2), as well as at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, where the Union members blocked access to Air Peace’s departure terminals.

The Unions virtually brought the airline’s activities to a screeching halt by blocking terminal entrances and check-in counters and preventing airline workers from accessing their offices and workstations to check in passengers and provide services.

Highlighting implications of the unions’ action, AON said “airlines lost huge sums of revenue together with other additional costs as a result of the disruptions.

 For instance, Air Peace alone had more than 70 of its flights affected, with estimated losses of over ₦2 billion.

 Similarly, more than 30 United Nigeria Airlines flights were affected, impacting about 13,000 passengers across the aircraft and sectors scheduled for that day.

Furthermore, airlines had to carry the unwarranted burden of rebooking passengers, offering accommodation, paying refunds, repositioning crew, rescheduling aircraft, and incurring other recovery costs in an already harsh operating environment, with unprecedentedly high fuel costs, very high foreign-exchange-based maintenance costs, and others.

The AON stands united with Air Peace and all our members in maintaining an absolute zero-tolerance policy towards all forms of unlawful interference to the safety of airline operations.

“We are committed to protecting our employees, revered passengers, equipment, and to maintaining the highest standards of safety and operational excellence, even with the peculiarities of our constraining operating environment.”

Recall that the picketing of Air Peace by aviation unions led primarily by the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), with the backing of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), centres on a long-standing impasse involving statutory remittances, anti-union allegations, and broader regulatory enforcement.

The unions and regulatory authorities alleged that Air Peace owes an estimated ₦15 billion to ₦17 billion in unremitted 5% TSC/CSC collections.

The statutory 5% charge collected directly from passengers and cargo shippers on behalf of civil aviation regulatory bodies (such as the NCAA, NAMA, and NiMet) is intended to fund air navigation infrastructure, regulatory oversight, and safety operations.

While unions argued that withholding these statutory collections starves aviation agencies of operational liquidity, airline operators maintain that reconciled debt figures, offsetting claims, and broader billing framework disputes needed to be addressed before blanket enforcement.

Labour leaders cite persistent resistance to employee unionisation within the airline, alleging anti-union practices and restrictions on staff joining industry associations.

Another union leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity as the unions are expected to speak on the matter on Wednesday, said that the entire unions in aviation would respond by Wednesday, stressing, “I can say off-handedly that the action of the unions was neither unlawful nor inimical to safety. It was rather the unlawful and mindless actions of AON members that led to the unions’ action.”

Wole Shadare