Worried about the huge losses in both passenger and cargo movement since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Association of foreign airlines representative in Nigeria AFARN, wants domestic airlines operators to synergize and minimize loss of revenue.
In a chat with newsmen, AFARN President, Mr. Kingsley Nwokoma revealed that the industry had lost $750 million in domestic cargo and $3.7 million to passenger movement locally.
He stated that over 100,000 have also been lost due to low volume of cargo and passenger load factor.
Nwokoma stressed that because of lack of synergy between the domestic operators, they had continued to loss revenue and this had led to sack of pilots, crew and other staff.
“There should be codesharing within the domestic carriers, there should be synergy, alliances.”
“At these times we all know, the flying public, some people are scared so volumes are low, that’s why you see lots of airlines are asking pilots to go home, asking crew to go because you can’t give what you don’t have if you are not making money, you are not making profit where are you going to get the money from. So, what I will want them to do us to codeshare, synergize.”
He urged domestic Operators to look the way of cargo as there was more money to make there than from passengers.”At this point in time, we should even have our domestic cargo freighters but we don’t have that, it is not because we can’t do it but because there us no synergy but let me tell you the truth, there is more money in cargo than passengers.”
Nwokoma noted that about 60% to 70% of cargo had resumed but business would never be as usual, urging Nigerian operators to toll the line of major airlines in the world who converted their passenger aircraft to cargo to make money, survive in the business and pay staff salaries.
He also called on the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria to to encourage airlines by reducing parking, landing and other taxes to enable the airlines survive.
