• Minister explains why Nigeria cannot have national carrier
• Enugu Airport to receive direct cargo flight from Guangzhou, China in December
•United Nigeria Airlines loses N10bn to Jet A1 Price surge over Iran crisis
Chinedu Eze
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, said the federal government had done a lot to support domestic airlines in line with President Bola Tinubu’s focus on empowering domestic airlines to take advantage of the multibillion dollars Nigeria air travel market.
Keyamo spoke at the unveiling of two aircraft acquired by the fast-rising carrier, United Nigeria Airlines (UNA), state-of-the-art Boeing B737-800 aircraft with registration numbers 5N-CFC and 5N-CFB, respectively.
The minister said the first target of the Tinubu administration in the aviation sector was to get the right policy direction and to give full support to domestic airlines.
He commended United Nigeria Airlines on its rapid rise, and disclosed that government was fully in support of the airline and the others.
On the issue of national carrier, Keyamo explained that the federal government had kept mum on the establishment of a national carrier because after various case studies it realised that a national carrier could not thrive under a democratic setting like Nigeria’s.
He said that was why government was focused on supporting Nigerian airlines owned by the private sector, under strict government regulation.
Keyamo stated, “All governments in the world are divesting from national airlines. It is not possible to run a national carrier under a bureaucratic setup without it collapsing into a bottomless pit.”
The minister stated that the federal government’s five-point agenda was strictly centred on the aggressive empowerment of local carriers, dropping policies that undermined the growth of domestic airlines. He said this explained why Ministry of Aviation and Aerospace Development approved major international routes for United Nigeria Airlines, which included Canada, Dubai, and United States.
He said, “We are giving United Nigeria Airlines fruitful reciprocal routes, including New York, Canada, and Dubai. We are only looking for the equipment to run these routes right now.”
Keyamo said with the growing passenger throughput, it was important that domestic operators captured a larger share of Nigeria’s 16 million annual passengers’ market.
He regretted that, currently, over 90 per cent of the market was dominated by foreign carriers.
The minister said it was the changes that the Tinubu administration brought into the aviation industry that made banks, which had hitherto shunned the aviation sector, to return to financing aircraft acquisitions and providing other funding services.
He said banks were also encouraged by the way the country’s biggest operator, Air Peace, promptly serviced its credit facilities.
The minister said government had moved to solve a major challenge for the domestic carriers, aircraft acquisition, disclosing that Tinubu approved the creation of a state-backed leasing company to resolve long-standing aircraft leasing barriers for local operators.
He stated, “I went to Mr. President to advocate for local operators who face strict international leasing hurdles.
“He has formally approved the establishment of the Nigerian Aircraft Leasing Company. This company will exist solely to bring in aircraft under a solid government guarantee through private dry-lease agreements, which will then be sub-leased directly to our domestic airlines.
“We are already in the process of taking this.”
Keyamo also spoke on how he pushed to get the federal government to earmark funds for the building of an airstrip in Abia State, the only state in the South-east that does not have an airport.
He stated, “The first thing we did when we came to power was that I went to Mr. President and said, ‘Abia does not have an airstrip or airport in the whole of the South.’ President was surprised, and we ensured it was captured as one of our first critical projects in the 2024 budget.”
Keyamo credited Governor Alex Otti’s aggressive counter-funding strategy for scaling up the scope of the project to a full airport.
He explained, “Credit to Dr. Alex Otti—he did not stop at that. When we scheduled an airstrip, he went straight to Mr. President behind me and said, ‘Sir, bring the money budgeted for the airstrip, I have counterpart funding. I will now make it a full international airport.’
“He is bringing his own state’s resources to the table. In fact, let me confess today, Abia State has injected its counterpart funding far ahead of the federal government’s allocation. Our money is coming, but work has advanced rapidly under his guidance.”
Keyamo confirmed the ministry’s long-term plan to actively guide United Nigeria Airlines to position its main hub within Abia State upon completion to link the commercial clusters of Aba and Umuahia directly to global trade routes.
The minister also spoke about how the federal government supported Enugu State Government when it wanted to develop the Akanu Ibiam International Airport to increase flight operations and other activities at the airport.
He stated, “One of our prides in the South is the Enugu International Airport. The Enugu governor approached Mr. President, noting that the airport was not maximizing its economic potential under standard bureaucratic structures, and requested to bring in private investors to run it. Mr. President gave the green light,”
Keyamo explained. “As I speak with you, Enugu Airport is now fully privately owned and run under the direction of the state government, with the clear objective of turning it into a dedicated cargo hub for the entire South-east.”
To operationalise the new status, Keyamo revealed that high-level bilateral trade negotiations were underway to secure direct logistics route between China and the South-east by the end of the year.
He said, “Just two days ago, the Enugu governor and I were actively negotiating the first direct cargo flight from Guangzhou, China, straight into Enugu.
“We are targeting December for the maiden flight. This will allow our South-east merchants and traders in China to consolidate their goods into unified cargo accounts twice a week, flying straight into Enugu for seamless delivery to hubs, like Onitsha and Aba.”
Airline Losses to Iran Crisis
Executive Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines, Professor Obiora Okonkwo, revealed that the carrier lost about N10 billion in a three-month stretch, occasioned by high cost of aviation fuel due to the Middle East crisis.
Within the last two months alone, Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) recorded 266.7 per cent surge in Jet A1 (aviation fuel) prices, which spiked from N900 to N3,300 per litre.
Okonkwo, in his speech at the equipment unveiling ceremony, explained that the two aircraft were named in honour of two icons, the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, and the late globally acclaimed literary giant, Chinua Achebe.
Reflecting on the airline’s survival strategy, Okonkwo stressed, “There are seasons when there are low passengers, but in the last three months, what we have seen is simply too much. We have lost about N10 billion, N5 billion, N6 billion in a space of three months as a result of the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. We have to make up for the losses we have incurred in the last three months.”
Okonkwo, however, said, “We have gathered here to celebrate. Two, three, four years ago, it was not clear what the future of aviation would be. There were issues, and in Nigeria, aviation was in total turmoil; until our minister, Festus Keyamo, stepped in.
“When he took over, we had a meeting in his office where he promised he would address the policy issues. Today, the right policies have helped us come this far.
“Today we have one Achebe that introduced Africa to the whole world. He is from my home town. Wherever I go around the world, I tell them that Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart is my great-great-grandfather. We have another Achebe who is a living legend and icon. We have here the Obi of Onitsha, Nnaemeka Achebe.”
Detailing the hidden operational deficits forced upon domestic carriers by international supply chain disruptions, Okonkwo stated, “The journey of this aircraft purchase was a long one. It started with the Boeing visit, the Minister of Aviation, and Moore Ibekwe (Executive Sales Director for the Africa, Middle East Region, Boeing Commercial Airplanes).”
He expressed gratitude to the leadership of the apex regulatory body for removing bureaucratic bottlenecks during the induction of the new fleet.
He said, “We are thankful to the Director General of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) who has made our services possible. I told him I had three aircraft that were arriving. Three of his directors came to our office on a Saturday, prepared all the documents, inspected the aircraft, and issued all the certificates. The process of operating aircraft won’t be easy without ease in certifications.
“United Nigeria started with just four old aircraft. I sent 23 pilots for heavy maintenance C-checks in South Africa, and two days after they left, the airspace closed down. Those 23 pilots were stuck there. We were paying for hotels and medicals for nine months.”
Okonkwo also spoke against a government policy stipulating that aviation agencies must remit part of their earnings to Single Treasury Account (TSA), pointing out that infrastructural deterioration stems directly from the deductions.
He stated, “Minister, we are not happy with the recent report from IATA (International Air Transport Association) that Nigeria is the most expensive place to operate commercial airline. It means it costs operators more to operate.
“We want a reduction in the charges. Unless the government leaves the money of aviation in the NCAA and Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) accounts, the services they offer will not improve.”
He added, “Government yanks out 70 per cent from of the aviation revenues to do other things that are not aviation-related, and this strains the NCAA and FAAN. If we leave these monies in their accounts, they will be encouraged to provide the needed services.
“The core aspect of the Nigeria economy is driven by aviation. In conclusion, when this is done, the government can also provide a single-digit loan to the airlines.”
