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The just-concluded Aviacargo summit where stakeholders in the aviation and insurance industries brainstormed on gamuts of issues is an opener as the summit kept stakeholders spellbound as to where aviation is headed, writes WOLE SHADARE Discourse One issue that dominated discourse at the Aviacargo summit tagged ‘CHINET 2022’ put together by travel expert and consultant, Ikechi Uko, was the role of insurance in aviation; the need for comprehensive insurance packages for Nigerian airlines, and the…

Nigeria’s airline industry is riddled with debts. The airlines are perpetually in debt. They owe banks and government several billion of Naira. They are funding slow expansion with short-term loans, putting banks and other firms in precarious situations, writes WOLE SHADARE   Unsuccessful venture It is becoming increasingly clear why virtually all Nigerian carriers are not successful. Seeking answers to this seems to be the easiest thing as many carriers in the country are highly…

Aviation security risks and threats evolve rapidly and manifest themselves in different forms. Recently, there has been a significant shift in the types of risks impacting civil aviation across the globe, prompting aviation experts to brainstorm on the application of multilayer security measures to nip the threats to aviation in the bud, writes WOLE SHADARE Security takes cenre-stage The issue of security has taken center stage in the contemporary international system. Continents, regions, and countries…

Airlines provide a vital service, but factors, including the existence of loss-making carriers, bloated cost structure, vulnerability to exogenous factors, and a reputation for poor service, combine to present impediments to profitability, writes WOLE SHADARE The sad reality The airline industry is no stranger to difficulties that have led them to bankruptcies and extinction. Many Nigerian carriers are technically bankrupt. Their indebtedness to various aviation agencies like the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the…

Lagos-Johannesburg was one of the best routes for South African Airways (SAA) because of the high yield and the boom in business activities between Nigeria and South Africa. The crowding of the route by Air Peace and ASKY is potentially turning it into loss-making. Visa issues, jet fuel hikes, and forex hiccups have forced Air Peace to make a retreat. WOLE SHADARE examines what is playing out on the route Once a juicy route The Nigeria-South…

Not a few have shrugged off the idea of ‘low-cost airlines’, saying it made little business sense in the context of dwindling revenue of airlines in Nigeria and Africa at large, writes, WOLE SHADARE Tough clime Africa is an expensive place for airlines to do business. Having the right fleet strategy, access to finance, and a harmonised regulatory system are all crucial for air transport to develop. The potential that Africa possesses for air services is…

Airlines and travelers are beginning to see the repercussion of over $450 million in carriers’ monies trapped in the country. Emirates Airlines has cut down capacity on the Nigerian route, while other carriers are likely to follow the trend. Airfares have gone up as a result of the action to keep their funds; job losses loom just as travel agents also feel the brunt, writes WOLE SHADARE   Dire situation The situation is very dire…

At times of surging fuel prices, one response by airlines has been to impose fuel surcharges on top of the base fares for flights. The sudden increase in the price of jet fuel has triggered the planned re-introduction of fuel surcharges by a number of airlines, writes, WOLE SHADARE Sector in crisis When faced with higher-than-anticipated costs or the imposition of excessive tax and other charges by the government, most airlines have two choices. They can…

A widespread deficit of aircraft engineers across all continents has affected the sector in recent years with cases of aircraft engineers’ shortage. Recruiting mechanics has become noticeably more difficult, writes WOLE SHADARE Huge deficit The shortage of aviation mechanics is seriously taking a toll on the sector worldwide. The shortage of aircraft engineers for many operators of Maintenance Repair Overhaul (MRO) in Nigeria has led to a capacity and expansion deficit in many of the…

The economic consequences of not fixing the Lagos airport 18/L for over 16 years are huge to airlines and the entire aviation value chain, WOLE SHADARE writes Answered prayers For many years, precisely nearly 16 years, the second runway of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, operated without airfield lighting. For many years, airline operators struggled and mounted pressure on the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to provide light on the second runway popularly referred…