Nigerian routes: Potpourri for foreign airlines

Nigeria has a very mobile population which is very good for air travel business. The Nigerian route is very enticing for foreign airlines that have used the destination as a fortress for their operation. WOLE SHADARE writes that airlines are maximizing the good yield the route offers to consolidate their operation

Love for air travel

 When it comes to air travel, Nigerians love to travel. Every Nigerian dream is to take a trip outside the shores of the country either for leisure or for business and most probably to relocate to for greener pastures.

Nigerian route is very attractive for many foreign carriers because of the high yield it offers to them. Many carriers scramble to operate to two of the country’s biggest cities-Lagos and Abuja.

High yield, interline options

The yield that the Nigerian market gives to the carriers is extremely good to be ignored. No wonder foreign carriers can do anything to get additional frequencies from the Nigerian government, which, to many, is a win-win.

Many, particularly Nigerian carriers, and other commentators, see it as an erosion of the market for the country’s airlines that have been boxed to a corner and require more than protests for government to listen to their cries.

Asking the airlines to partner with their Nigerian counterparts may be a tall order because of the poor flight schedule, propensity to mismanage passengers’ luggage, and other poor service delivery that may scuttle the partnership.

The Emirates-Air Peace interline deal shows that a few Nigerian airlines are still very attractive for foreign airlines to do business with.

The interline agreement is expected to benefit corporate travellers, connecting to additional cities in one of Africa’s major economic hubs, including its capital city Abuja, Kano, Uyo, Port Harcourt and Warri, further supporting the strong bilateral trade relationship between Nigeria and the UAE.

Adnan Kazim, Emirates’ Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer said, “Emirates is a steadfast partner of Nigeria’s tourism, trade and aviation sectors. This partnership with Air Peace is the next step on this journey, bolstering our connectivity and introducing more travel options for corporate leisure, and travellers visiting friends and family to and from Nigeria. We look forward to deepening our strategic partnership with Air Peace in the future to enhance the benefits for our mutual customers.”

Qatar Airways Vice President for Africa, Hendrik du Preez, stated that even if there are these opportunities, one of the key things is to find the right partner that “we both have the same vision and to make sure safety and security are in place, having the ability for all passengers to enter another airline that is safe.”

He further stated that it is something that they were investigating to see if they can work much closer in the Nigerian market as well.

He reiterated that there are some of their partners they have been able to align their schedules with, stressing that at the end of the day, it just gives opportunities to people to travel, to grow the aviation market, which is beneficial for everyone.

In their own case, it becomes extremely difficult to do. On the other hand, the government has the responsibility to provide air travel or bring air travel very close to the people as long as it makes the carriers part with more money in the name of royalty for the extra frequency it grants to them, a situation that would not make Nigeria lose on all fronts.

Truth be told, the taxes the foreign airlines pay to the government form about 80 percent of the total taxes from aviation accruing to the Federal Government.

Government’s support

Meanwhile, the Nigerian government has stood solidly behind the airlines in terms of strong support and activating the clauses of reciprocity to bear its fangs on any country that tries to deny Nigerian carriers rights to their country.

The Nigerian aviation market is very unique. The uniqueness of that market is that unlike other markets passengers fill the aircraft from the first cabin to the last.

In other words, in Nigeria, airlines fill up their first class, business and economy cabins regularly. Nigeria is arguably one of the most competed market in Africa. Analysts have posited that Nigeria gives major international carriers the highest profit per flight in Africa.

Nigerians are class-conscious flyers that prefer travelling in the first and business class. Normally carriers earn more per seat for the few seats in first class and business class, than hundreds of seats in the economy class.

Opening up the space

Just last week, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr. Festus Keyamo granted approval to Air Algerie new flight route from Algiers-Abuja-Douala.

This was disclosed when the Ambassador of Algeria, Mezoued Hocine paid a courtesy to Keyamo, seeking approval for Air Algérie’s new flight route from Algiers-Abuja-Douala, scheduled to launch on April 6th as the airline’s 7th route in Africa.

Reaffirming his unwavering support, the Minister declared his 100% backing for Air Algérie, assuring the Ambassador of his commitment to a smooth approval process.

The minister at the weekend attested to opening up the country’s airspace for more commercial activities and connectivity when he said, “We have opened up so many routes now. Before now, we can’t even go from Nigeria to Cameroon, our next door neighbours. We had to go all the way to Togo or elsewhere. We have fought so hard and that is expected to happen with Air Algerie now”.

“They are going to go Algiers, Abuja and Cameroon. We fought to get that happen. We are opening up so many routes for Nigerians and others. The aviation sector is so big. It is like a big elephant from policy to infrastructure and directions and decisions to move the sector forward.”

While international airlines are seeing opportunities here despite so many challenges such as infrastructure and other encumbrances slowing down the ease of doing business, their Nigerian counterparts offer little or no completion as embodied in the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) Nigeria has with many other nations.

It may not totally be their fault. A lot of issues seem to have conspired to take the backseat role in the lucrative international air transport market.

Stakeholder’s view

A former Assistant Secretary-General of Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), Mohammed Tukur recently told Aviation Metric that Nigeria’s Lagos and Abuja routes are the most lucrative destinations for airlines operating in Africa due to the high load factor.

A former airline owner who pleaded anonymity said the time is now for the Nigerian aviation sector to wake up and contribute as it should to the economy.

According to him, Nigerians travel by air a lot, disclosing that a particular foreign airline did a turnover of $2 million, while another made over $2 million profit, with Nigeria one of their most profitable routes.

He noted that Nigeria has the highest seats per mile rate anywhere in the world, but asked what have been the mutual benefits of those bilateral air services agreements (BASAs) signed with the Nigerian government, in terms of financial gains, skills, and employment of youths?

Last line

Nigeria is geographically well placed coupled with its nearly population of nearly 300 million makes it an attraction for foreign airlines.

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