Aviation

Despite the depreciating value of Naira, aviation ground handling firms’ charges in Nigeria are said to be the lowest in the world; a situation, operators said was no longer sustainable. Thorough analytical study shows that Nigeria offers the lowest ground handling rate in West Africa in comparison to Ghana, Cameroon, Senegal and other Francophone airports. Consequently, stakeholders are meeting with a view to arriving at what would be the appropriate pricing for the same services…

  Minister Presents Concept Note to NUC The quest by the Federal Government, through the Ministry of Aviation, to establish an Aviation and Aerospace University has been boosted by the assurance of the National Universities Commission (NUC) to expedite action on the concept document submitted by the Minister of Aviation Hadi Sirika. Executive Secretary, National University Commission, Professor Abubakar Adamu Rasheed who gave the assurance after receiving the note from the Minister, said the commission…

Nigerian carriers in limbo, Jet A1 rises to N320/litres       It has been a while ago since airlines have complained of oil prices, but that is about to change.  Jet fuel prices are on the rise again, notably since May, and continuing to rise through June into the third quarter.  Meanwhile, the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the clearing house for more than 290 global airlines, has warned that oil prices will cast…

  The Accident Investigation Bureau, Nigeria (AIB-N) has commenced the provision of technical support for the setting up of the Sierra Leone Aircraft Accident Incident Investigation Bureau (SL-AAIIB). This was marked by the conclusion of a recent two-day fact-finding mission to the Sierra Leone Aircraft Accident Incident Investigation Bureau (SL-AAIIB) by the Accident Investigation Bureau, Nigeria (AIB-N). This is the second time AIB-N will be assisting member countries in the sub region to establish their…

The planned concession of four airporrts across the country would not lead to job losses according to the Minister of Aviation,  Hadi Sirika. Sirika gave the assurance at the Federal Government said it would use between June and August this year to finalise the issue of airport concession in the country even as labour continues to kick against the project Sirika who revealed this in Lagos at the end of the Airport Business Summit and Expo…

Pioneers drone use for crash probe in W’A   Accident Investigation Bureau-Nigeria (AIB-N) has scored another first as the agency is pioneering the use of drones for accident investigation in the West African sub-region. The agency has already acquired 4Nos. MAVIC-2 Pro and 1No. Matrice 300 RTK DJI drones for this purpose. While the acquisition of the machine is good news, the bad news is that the drone regulations by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA)…

Offer customers greater choice   Delta Air Lines and Kenya Airways PLC have expanded their codeshare agreement, increasing the choice of destinations offered by Delta in Africa and extending Kenya Airways’ reach in North America via the U.S. gateway of New York-JFK. The new agreement enhances the airlines’ already extensive codeshare network to offer seamless travel to a total of 39 cities across Africa, the United States and Canada. The enhanced agreement enables Delta customers…

Why African airlines bleed-Olumide Emirates first-ever loss, a one-off-Experts     The first ever loss recorded by one of the biggest airlines in the world-Emirates Airlines in 33 years signposts the devastating effects of COVID-19 pandemic to global aviation industry. The impact is colossal even for state owned carriers that are heavily backed by their various governments as major carriers that have never reported losses were hit. Airlines like Ethiopia Airlines, reputed to be the…

  The United Arab Emirates may have blinked following the standoff between her and Nigeria over modalities for PCR tests and rapid test as the country has lifted a travel ban on Nigeria, India and South Africa. A message from the Dubai Media Office said passengers from Nigeria are expected to have received a negative result for a PCR test taken within 48 hours before departure. Passengers are also expected to present a negative PCR…

Emirates reports its first ever loss in 33 years. It announced an AED 22.1 billion ($6 billion) Group loss for its financial year 2020-2021 on June 15. The airline branch contributed to this loss with AED 20.3 billion. Emirates is giving no guidance on its current financial year, but aims “to recover to our full capacity as quickly as possible.” With its financial year running from March to March, Emirates suffered all the pain from…