FG mulls bail out for airlines, carriers cut capacity by 60%
- Aero seeks merger, Air Peace scraps inflight meal service
- Airlines risk extinction
Nigerian airlines were before now struggling to survive as the carriers had cut their operations by over 30 per cent but the advent of COVID-19 could see airlines cut their capacity by over 6o per cent.
Investigations by Woleshadarenews show that many carriers may not return to operations while others are planning a hike in air fares and cutting down on inflight services among other cost cutting measures.
The country’s flag carrier airline, Air Peace painted a grim picture of the sector, saying it reduced its operations to 42 flights in a day before the lockdown, adding that so many airlines stand the risk of liquidation post COVID-19.
Managing Director of Air Peace, Mr. Allen Onyema said, “COVID-19 is more devastating more than 9/11, adding that a lot of measures have to come to place to counter the effects on our business”.
He further disclosed that his airline has decided to stop inflight catering as it has decided to downsize workforce by 60 percent.
His words, “This Covid-19 has brought a lot of new normal, it will affect the entire value chain, passenger figures are going to shrink, a new set of regulations will emerge. And this is not about individual airline, we need to shun unhealthy competition, airlines need to stop serving food onboard, Air Peace will not serve meals again. We are going to downsize because the passengers will no longer be there, we are going to deploy four out of the 7 B737 aircraft and six out of the Embraer fleet”.
“The Lagos- Abuja route is no longer going to be every hour, we are downsizing to about 60 percent and it is advisable that every airline must operate according to its strength. The staff must understand that sacrifices must be made, it may not be total sack because as operation rebounds, you bring them back gradually. Airlines can stagger the payment of debts in agreement with the company they are owing and NCAA has to be more proactive”, he added.
Federal Government is at the verge of helping airlines through a fresh round of bail put to airlines to save millions of jobs that ate threatened.
The Director-General of Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Capt Musa Nuhu disclosed that the Federal Government was working on fresh bail out for the carriers.
At a virtual seminar with theme, “Flying Into Turbulent Skies, Safety Navigating COVID-19 Headwind” put together by AELEX and monitored by New Telegraph, the NCAA DG said Aviation Minister, Hadi Sirika presented the situation to the Federal Executive Council (FEC).
Other beneficiaries according to him are aviation agencies, ground handling firms and other aviation related bodies.
“We have made consultations and we are still consulting, we have consulted with airlines, we plan to have another consultation with them and the ground handlers, we are developing a programme for an economic stimulus package, all inclusive, all the heads of agencies were recently locked up in a hotel in Abuja including the Minister to map out ways of getting stimulus for the sector. The minister presented a very good case on this with the Vice President”, he said.
He noted that air transportation is very critical to a nation, especially Nigeria that is dependent on oil, hence the sector cannot afford to be comatose.
He noted that the sector may not be the same many years to come, adding that two major issues the NCAA are looking at and will look at after resumption of flight are Airworthiness and Health Protocols.
He said there is need to ensure proper procedures are in place in Nigeria, and those that will be in tandem with global standards too.
“We need to ensure that we have procedures in place, we need to look at two major issues: Airworthiness and Health Protocols, we have developed some guidelines in conjunction with the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), we still have some issues on crew quarantine, we have agreed on certain protocols for Nigerian airlines so that when they fly out and come back, the crew don’t have to be quarantined”.
“We have consulted with the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) extensively to ensure that all we are doing is globally acceptable”, he said
He urged stakeholders to see the period as an opportunity to re-invent the sector, adding that the aviation industry has changed forever.
“This opportunity provides an excellent period for cargo operations, the sector has changed forever and the NCAA has a significant role to play, the industry needs to think out of the box”, he added.
Also speaking, Captain Ado Sanusi, Managing director, Aero Contractors called for mergers and acquisitions, saying this is one of the way forward for the sector.
“There will be code-sharing, I believed that acquisition and merges will usher in an industry that will weather the storm. It may not be exactly the same as in the banking sector, but we may go this way. It is time for us to reflect. I am very confident that the sector will rebound, yes people will lose their jobs, they would be put on redundancy but we need to forget about competition and think about a very robust aviation industry”, he said.
