Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has expressed concern about airlines’ failure to remit charges collected for Federal Government’s agencies.
Domestic airlines owed the authority over N6 billion from the five per cent ticket, charter and cargo sales charges collected from the public.
The charges, according to the NCAA, were paid to airlines to avoid collection before flights, thereby creating confusion and delays.
In a statement yesterday, NCAA’s spokesman, Mr. Sam Adurogboye, called on the affected airlines to offset the debts, which were stunting the growth of aviation agencies.
The statement reads: “The NCAA notices with serious concern the huge debts of airlines as a result of failure to settle promptly invoices as at when due.
“Consequently, the NCAA would be pleased to see that the airlines put plans in place to liquidate all outstanding indebtedness. The settlement of those debts will assist the authority fulfill its statutory obligations to the country and the world.
“The NCAA has tried many times to get the money from airlines that sometimes falsify and misrepresent the payment of the charges to the travelling public, accusing them of concealing the real reason behind the charges.”
Adurogboye added that the five per cent charge was enshrined in the Civil Aviation Act and embedded in passengers’ fares, adding that airlines were supposed to collect it from passengers and pay to the NCAA.
He explained that in line with the Civil Aviation Act 2006, the NCAA was saddled with the collection of five per cent sales charge on all tickets originating from Nigeria, cargo operations and charter/contract flights.
After collection, the ticket sales charge is shared among aviation agencies namely: Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NIMET), Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) and the Nigeria College of Aviation Technology (NCAT) as approved by the Civil Aviation Act 2006.
He denied insinuations that airlines were paying five per cent of their earnings to the NCAA as ticket sales charge.
Adurogboye said: ‘’I wish to correct a serious misconception being sold to the public by some airlines. NCAA has reports that some airlines are purporting that the five per cent TSC is being paid to us from their earnings. This, they say, is adversely affecting their operations.
“This is absolutely false and a misrepresentation. The TSC is content charged in the ticket sold to passengers. The airlines’ role is to collect and remit to the regulatory authority.”
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