AON Suspends Planned Shutdown Pending Keyamo Talks
Airline Operators of Nigeria have suspended their threatened nationwide shutdown over a reported 300 percent increase in the price of Jet A1 aviation fuel, announcing that further action depends on the outcome of a meeting with the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development scheduled for Wednesday. The development coincided with confirmation by United Nigeria Airlines that a third bird strike incident in 48 hours had damaged one of its aircraft, forcing it out of service.
The AON announced the decision in a communiqué issued late Friday following an emergency meeting of its executive council. The group described the suspension as “concessionary but conditional” and stated unequivocally that “the planned shutdown action scheduled for Monday, April 20, 2026, is hereby called off, albeit temporarily.”
The suspension followed a formal appeal by Minister Festus Keyamo in a letter dated April 16, 2026, addressed to the AON president. Keyamo urged operators to refrain from increasing airfares or suspending flights, warning that any immediate fare adjustment could “worsen economic hardship for Nigerians, reduce passenger demand, and limit access to air travel.” He further cautioned that a shutdown would “disrupt mobility and logistics networks, erode public confidence in the aviation sector and undermine ongoing reforms.”
In the letter, Keyamo acknowledged the strain operators face amid the ongoing conflict between Israel, the United States, and Iran which began on February 28, 2026. He noted that the administration of President Bola Tinubu “accords the aviation sector the highest strategic importance” and has initiated “unprecedented reforms aimed at supporting the growth and sustenance of the businesses of local operators.” A high-level emergency stakeholders’ meeting has been scheduled for April 22, 2026, in Abuja.
Separately, United Nigeria Airlines confirmed that its Embraer 190 aircraft suffered a bird strike during take-off of flight UN0561 from Benin City Airport to Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, at approximately 16:20 on Wednesday. In a statement by Public Relations Officer Chibuike Uloka, the airline said the strike damaged the aircraft’s Nose Landing Gear door linkage, necessitating immediate withdrawal from service for safety checks and repairs.
Uloka disclosed that this marks the third United Nigeria Airlines aircraft grounded by bird strikes in under 48 hours and the seventh such occurrence recorded in 2026 so far. “While our operating aircraft have experienced multiple bird strike incidents, we report only those that have resulted in aircraft being grounded due to damaged part(s),” the statement read. The airline urged the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria to “strengthen wildlife hazard management measures across major airports to minimise the risk of such occurrences.”
The recurring incidents have heightened scrutiny of wildlife hazard management protocols at Nigerian airports.