Forex scarcity forces operators to ‘cannibalise’ disused airplanes as carriers face existential threat

• Why 60% aircraft on offshore maintenance can’t return,
• Operators deplore spare price gouging, scarcity, travellers lament

The lack of foreign exchange for airlines to bring back their aeroplanes from maintenance overseas has put enormous pressure on the operators. Some have resorted to ‘cannibalising’ by using some parts of their unserviceable aircraft for the ones in use.

Lying on the apron across many of the country’s airports are aircraft without engines and other parts which shows that many of the valuable parts have been removed as spares for other serviceable aircraft.

As of the last count, nearly 60 per cent of aircraft owned by Nigerian airlines are parked at airports or maintenance facilities in Nigeria or overseas; a development that has led to a reduction in capacity and a hike in airfares, as airlines continue to scale operations.

Many airlines have scaled down their schedules as airports receive fewer airplanes than before, which has reduced revenue for both the airlines and the country.

In the past, some airports like the Asaba International Airport and Anambra Airport which used to receive about five flights a day have reduced to one and two flights a day respectively.

Flights have stopped coming because many of the airlines’ aircraft are on AOG (Aircraft On Ground). Most of the airlines’ aircraft don’t fly for the moment.

The shortage of aircraft spare parts from vendors and the delay in making them available at the right time have also been cited as probable reasons for the action of some of the operators to remain in business.

The grounding of aircraft due to a shortage of spare parts equally raises concerns over price gouging.

The unavailability of parts, delivery delays, high maintenance costs and price gouging are among the problems facing the country’s airlines and are responsible for some engaging in ‘cannibalism’.

In aviation, to cannibalise an aircraft is to take salvageable parts of disused aircraft for use in another aircraft that is in use.

The crash in the number of operational domestic aircraft, among other industry challenges has contributed immensely to the very high airfares on local routes in the country, operators said.

An airline operator who spoke to Aviation Metric who preferred anonymity said the aircraft shortage challenges faced by airlines are the major cause of flight delays and cancellations, stressing that the carriers are operating under a very harsh environment.

The source said aircraft fleets are depleting at an alarming rate, hinting that many aircraft that had gone for maintenance can’t come back because of the high cost of maintenance offshore; a situation he said has made many operators abandon them in many maintenance facilities as the cost of C and D-checks are now beyond the reach of the operators whose woes are compounded by the difficulty in accessing Foreign Exchange.

The Federal Government has been asked to make Foreign Exchange available to airlines that are groaning under the excruciating pain of accessing it.

A former spokesman for the liquidated Nigeria Airways, Mr Chris Aligbe who spoke shortly before airline operators under the aegis of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) met with Finance Minister, Mr Wale Edun on Friday said the challenge of the airlines that should be considered is not just accessing of foreign exchange but they should consider making foreign exchange available to the airline for maintenance to ease maintenance which he said is a huge problem.

His words, “If they can have money to pay for maintenance so that some aircraft that have gone for maintenance can come back because many of the aircraft are on the ground because the airlines don’t have money to pay for the maintenance.”

“Even an airline (name withheld) cannibalized one of their aircraft, using the part to maintain another aircraft. That should be the focus of the airlines. It is not a question of palliative for the government to give them money free of charge or to provide money for them to pay for maintenance to pay the Naira value. When it is for maintenance, the government will be able to say this FX allocation is meant for airlines to pay for maintenance cost and not any other thing”, he added.

Aligbe warned that the Nigerian airline industry faces an existential threat if the government fails to reassess its FOREX market policies and the Central Bank’s administration of it.

Many are of the view that the multiple taxes and levies imposed on airline operators must be reviewed, just as they called on the Nigerian Customs Service to implement the government-approved zero-tax policy on aeroplane engines and all aircraft spare parts.

They urged the government to collaborate with operators to develop strategic measures to resolve pending issues hindering airline operations on domestic and international routes.

Friday’s meeting between the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) and the Federal Government they noted showcased exemplary leadership and patriotism from Vice President Kashim Shettima for demonstrating a solution-oriented approach by allocating responsibilities to Ministers, setting timelines for achieving results, and significantly mitigating the problems faced by the industry.

Wole Shadare