Unions Issue 14-Day Ultimatum to Airlines Over Billions in Unremitted 5% Ticket Charges
Industrial peace in Nigeria’s aviation sector is hanging by a thread. A coalition of major aviation unions has issued a stern 14-day ultimatum to domestic carriers under the aegis of the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), demanding the immediate remittance of outstanding 5% Ticket Sale Charges (TSC) running into billions of Naira.
The TSC is a statutory levy collected by airlines on behalf of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) and other critical aviation agencies to fund safety oversight and maintain secure air transportation nationwide.
In a jointly signed petition dated July 8, 2026, titled “Demand for immediate remittance of outstanding 5% TSC to aviation agency: 14-day ultimatum,” the unions expressed grave concerns over what they termed a systemic failure by multiple airlines to remit the statutory funds.
The letter, co-signed by Comrade Frances Akinjole, General Secretary of the Air Transport Services Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (ATSSSAN), and Comrade Odinaka Igbokwe, Deputy General Secretary of the National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE), warned that the multi-billion-naira backlog is crippling agency operations.
“The accumulation of these outstanding remittances over the past years has run into several billions of Naira and has adversely affected the revenue profile of the agencies,” the letter read. “This is creating avoidable financial constraints that negatively impact the effective discharge of their statutory responsibilities and the smooth operation of the aviation sector in general. This is safety compromised.”
The unions reminded the airlines that the 5% TSC is a legal obligation backed by international frameworks, rather than a discretionary payment or a source of corporate profit.
They cited ICAO Doc 9734 (Safety Oversight Manual, Parts A and B), which explicitly mandates a sustainable and stable financing mechanism for civil aviation authorities. Because passengers pay this fee upfront at the time of ticket purchase, airlines act strictly as collection agents and are legally bound by the Civil Aviation Act to remit the funds promptly and in full.
The union leaders stressed that the agencies operate strictly on a cost-recovery basis to ensure safe skies, making the non-remittance of these funds completely unacceptable, as it directly undermines the financial stability of Nigeria’s aviation watchdogs.
The 14-day grace period serves as a final warning. The unions have threatened drastic action if the domestic operators fail to clear their balance sheets, hinting at a potential airspace shutdown to prevent a catastrophic breakdown in safety standards.
“Kindly note that failure to comply with this demand within the stipulated period will leave the aviation unions with no alternative but to employ every means necessary to ensure that the entire Nigerian aviation sector does not go aground because of air safety issues necessitated by the actions and inactions of the entities stifling the agencies of their required operational funds,” the unions warned.
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