Air Peace Entry Sparks International Airfare War on Lagos-London Route
The launch of direct flights between Lagos and London by Nigeria’s Air Peace has ignited an intense price war among airlines operating on this highly lucrative international route. Foreign carriers have been forced to slash their economy ticket prices dramatically to compete with the new entrant’s rock-bottom fares.
When Air Peace commenced nonstop service to London on March 30, it set a shockingly low round-trip economy fare of just ₦1.2 million ($965) for the over 6-hour flight. This severely undercut existing fares from foreign airlines that had reached as high as ₦3 million ($2,400) during peak periods.
Foreign airlines initially responded by reducing their Lagos-London economy fares to around ₦1.4 million ($1,125) last week. But as of Wednesday, they’ve had to cut prices even further to an average of just ₦841,732 ($676) for a round-trip economy ticket.
The lowest fares now come from Egypt Air at ₦585,620 ($470) and Royal Air Maroc at ₦569,422 ($456.99). Air Peace is currently charging ₦816,130 ($655) roundtrip, while British Airways has dropped to ₦981,848 ($787.99), Virgin Atlantic to ₦1.1 million ($927.99), and KLM to ₦1.1 million ($927.84).
This dramatic airfare deflation has travelers rejoicing at the newfound affordability of flying between Nigeria and the UK. But Air Peace’s Chairman Allen Onyema sees the price slashing by foreign carriers as an “unspoken alliance” aimed at forcing his airline out of the international market.
Onyema alleges the foreign airlines are deliberately underpricing “below cost” in a “very devilish conspiracy” to make Air Peace’s London service unsustainable. He claims if they succeed in driving out Air Peace, “Nigerians will pay 20 times over again” as the foreign carriers re-exert their pricing power.
However, the President of the Association of Foreign Airlines in Nigeria (AFARN) denies any conspiracy, stating AFARN is “happy” Air Peace entered the Lagos-London market and will encourage members to keep lowering fares.
Travel experts see the fare war as ultimately benefiting Nigerian travelers through added competition on the lucrative UK route. Lower ticket prices will mean more affordable travel and likely boost overall passenger numbers.
Some analysts also credit the Central Bank of Nigeria’s efforts to stabilize the naira exchange rate, which had previously fueled high international airfares when the currency was weaker.
Regardless of the underlying factors, Nigerian air travelers are reveling in the affordable London fares while the fare war rages on. Many have taken to social media to declare their loyalty to Air Peace despite the cheaper options from foreign carriers.
As one Facebook user succinctly put it: “We die with Air Peace…long live Air Peace!” Only time will tell if the local champion can withstand the overseas onslaught and maintain its foothold on such a hotly contested international route.
Reference
Lagos To London: Air Peace Flight Fare Sparks Price War published in Channel By Opeoluwani Akintayo