BREAKING: Jet A1 fuel crisis: Tinubu approves debt waiver, cuts charges for airline operators

President Bola Tinubu has announced plans to grant waivers on debts owed by domestic airlines to aviation agencies and to review the structure of levies, taxes, and charges on domestic air tickets, as part of efforts to ease the impact of the ongoing Jet A1 fuel crisis on the aviation sector.

The development was disclosed on Wednesday by the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, following a high-level meeting with airline operators and oil marketers in Abuja.

Keyamo said the President expressed strong concern over the challenges facing the industry and directed urgent action to provide relief to operators.

“I had the privilege of meeting Mr. President to brief him about the meeting, and Mr. President mandated us to quickly bring a request to him. The first request that he will consider and grant is a generous discount on the debts the airlines are owing the aviation agencies, NAMA, FAAN, NCAA, and so on and so forth,” Keyamo said.

He added that the President is personally involved in determining the level of relief to be granted.

“The percentage of discounts and all that Mr. President will decide, he is so concerned about what is happening. He asked me in particular to express his deep appreciation to the airline operators. He knows the conditions under which we operate,” he added.

Keyamo also revealed that the President is considering broader reforms to reduce the financial burden on domestic air travel.

“The second request Mr. President has asked that we should bring for him to consider fully and grant is that he wants to set up a committee to address the issue of levies, taxes, and fees on domestic tickets once and for all,” he said.