The Director General, Civil Aviation, Capt. Musa Nuhu says, there is a growing demand for aviation services due to the many challenges traveling by road.
He said, this is encouraging many airlines to establish or plan to establish operations in Nigeria.
In an opening remarks at the just concluded Leagues of Airports and Aviation Correspondents, LAAC 27th conference in Lagos with the theme: ‘Aviation Industry: Changing Times, Changing Strategies’ in Lagos however noted that, despite the string of challenges the industry is grappling with ranging from regulatory, institutional and structural, the industry is expected to experience significant improvements in areas of safety, security, technology, development infrastructure, airline management and operations among others.
Capt. Nuhu represented at the conference by the Director, Airworthiness Standards, Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, Engr. Gbolahan Abatan said, an effective legal and institutional framework has been provided.
This he stated will ensure a virile and prosperous aviation in Nigeria and ensure that her obligations under international aviation agreements implemented in conformity with the standards and recommended practices set by International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), in Y2022, the Civil Aviation Act (CAA) 2022 assented to by the immediate past President, Muhammadu Buhari.
The DGCA applauded the initiative of the domestic airlines in the choice of aircraft currently being used due to proper planning.
“We are also beginning to see operators moving away from poor choice of aircraft, poor or bad route planning and operating models. Following the outbreak of the devastating pandemic which almost brought humanity to its knees, many Nigerian airline operators cutting across established and new entrants are appreciating the economics or intrinsic benefits of operating newer and narrow-body aircraft or single-aisle aircraft like Boeing 707, Boeing 727, Boeing 737, Boeing 757, Airbus A320 and Embraer E-Jet families as their immediate recovery and survival strategy”.
He therefore urged the airlines to effective tap into its huge market opportunity, cooperative behaviour and alliances among airlines became inevitable as it is prevalent in other climes.
“Synergy, collaboration, cooperation or merger is the rule of the game. I want to encourage Nigerian airlines to avoid I-want-to-do-it-alone as reflected in their lone-wolf operational tactic”.
According to him, the Spring Alliance formed by six airline operators is commendable, stressing that, such cooperation would help airlines to grow and improve service delivery.
“Taking a cue from legendary global alliances, sometime in 2022, there was also a revolutionary initiative in the industry when about six of our operators signed a pact tagged the ‘Spring Alliance’ to mutually support one another’s operations and improve service delivery for the mutual benefit of the passengers and the airlines alike”.
He added, “Even though the ‘Spring Alliance’ was Nigerian initiative, there is window for other like-minded airlines around the world to key into the scheme. Efficiency is the barometer for success in the industry as airlines’ On-Time-Performance (OTP) is an indispensable condition”.
“Without any iota of doubt, such landmark passenger-centric initiative will bring about sustainability and stability of airlines operations in terms of connectivity, low capacity and enhancement of seamless facilitation, thereby preventing flight delays and cancellations. Even though the phenomenon of delays is global, we are poised to minimize the number of delays to the simplest minimum”.
