FCCPC Alleges Festive Season Price Manipulation by Local Airlines, to Probe Foreign Carriers
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has alleged that some local airlines engaged in price manipulation during the last festive season, following an industry-wide investigation conducted across the aviation sector in January.
FCCPC’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Ondaje Ijagwu, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, noting that the forensic exercise relied on data collated by the Commission from airlines operating domestic routes in the country.
“The findings are contained in the interim report released today (Thursday) by the Commission’s department of Surveillance and Investigations. The report compares domestic airline pricing from the December 2025 festive period with post-peak January 2026 fare levels.
“Preliminary analysis indicates that fares recorded during the December peak were materially higher than those observed in the post-peak period across several routes despite relative stability in critical operating variables like fuel price, government taxes and foreign exchange,” Ijagwu stated.
He mentioned that the differences observed in fares appear to reflect airlines’ arbitrary pricing decisions, including yield management and capacity allocation, rather than any variation in regulatory fees.
Ijagwu revealed that route-level analysis shows higher fares coincided with periods of reduced seat availability during predictable seasonal demand peaks, stressing that on some high-density routes, peak fares were clustered within relatively narrow ranges across several operators.
“For instance, on certain corridors like Abuja-Port Harcourt, peak fares were several times higher than corresponding post-peak levels. On selected routes, the difference in the price of a single ticket reached approximately ₦405,000. Median fares across the sampled routes also rose markedly during the festive window when compared with post-peak benchmarks.
“However, the interim report recognises that seasonal demand pressures, scheduling constraints and fleet utilisation may also affect pricing during peak travel periods. These factors remain under consideration as part of the Commission’s ongoing review,” he added.
Commenting on the release of the interim report, the Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the FCCPC, Mr. Tunji Bello, said that the review is part of the Commission’s statutory responsibility to promote competitive markets and safeguard consumers.
“This assessment is intended to provide clarity on pricing behaviour during predictable peak travel periods. The Commission’s role is not to disrupt legitimate commercial activity, but to ensure that market outcomes remain consistent with competition and consumer protection principles under the law,” Bello explained.
He declared that the Commission is conducting further structural and route-level analysis before reaching any conclusions.
“It is important to emphasise that this is an interim report. Our next action will be dictated by full facts established at the end of the review exercise. Then, the Commission will decide whether any regulatory guidance, engagement or enforcement steps are necessary, strictly in accordance with the law,” he remarked.
Bello emphasised that the report identifies the possible relevance of Sections 59, 72, 107, 108, 124 and 127 of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2018, which respectively address the prohibition of agreements in restraint of competition, abuse of a dominant position, price fixing, conspiracy to commit offences under the Act, the right to fair dealings, and the prohibition of unfair, unreasonable or unjust contract terms.
He added that foreign airlines will come under the FCCPC’s radar after the ongoing review of local airlines, amid widespread complaints that they allegedly charge Nigerians higher fares on certain routes than in neighbouring countries of similar distance.
