Nigeria’s Aviation News Headlines for Friday September 30, 2016

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Thank God it’s Friday!. Why is British Airways stopping free In-flight meals on short-haul flights for economy class passengers? Aero Contractors tried it here in Nigeria but could not sustain it.Does British Airways want to operate like low cost Carriers?  Let’s see how BA will fair when this kicks off.  Please find the headlines below and follow the links to read the full stories.

 British Airways to Scrap Free Meals

British Airways. PHOTO: ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images
British Airways. PHOTO: ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP/Getty Images
 
British Airways is scrapping free meals for short-haul economy fares from next year and inviting passengers to instead pay for Marks and Spencer sandwiches, creating a stir on social media. The pair announced the tie-up on Thursday, which sees BA joining the no-frills airline model of charging passengers for food and drink.
From January, BA will charge £4.75 ($6.2, 5.5 euros) for a tomato and mozzarella focaccia, £1 for hand cooked crisps and a minimum of £4 for alcoholic drinks. No food item will cost more than £5.


BA said the move “follows extensive customer research and feedback, which highlighted dissatisfaction with the airline’s current short-haul economy catering”. But customer Lee Butterley tweeted: “Hey @British_Airways literally no reason to pick you over EasyJet and Ryanair anymore then?”
James Forshaw added: “Wow @British_Airways taking away the free food is one thing, but drinks, even soft ones? Really is no reason to fly BA short haul anymore.”



Nigeria Releases $300m Airlines’ Funds
nigeria flag
Foreign airlines operating into Nigeria can now heave a sigh of relief. The value of ticket sales owed to them in Nigeria has been reduced by over 50 per cent since June, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said yesterday, adding it is making progress to recoup billions of dollars in revenues blocked by some countries.
The clearing house for global airlines in June this year put foreign airlines’ funds stranded in the Nigerian economy at N120 billion ($600 million). The group had appealed to the Nigerian government and four others to respect international agreements obliging them to ensure airlines are able to repatriate their revenues.
The funds were proceeds from sale of tickets by the airlines in the last 12 months, which could not be repatriated due to Federal Government’s policy on foreign exchange. Penultimate week, the Central Bank of Egypt and Egypt’s Civil Aviation Authority released $240m airlines’ funds for repatriation.
Talks continue to establish an achievable payment schedule to settle the remaining amount. Venezuela owes foreign airlines operating into the country $3.780 billion, the highest of the blocked funds, followed by Nigeria, put at $600 million, Sudan, $360 million, Egypt, $291 million and Angola, $237. IATA, the trade association of the world’s airlines, said it wants to develop a “common strategy” where carriers act in tandem to recuperate ticket sales revenue being withheld in Venezuela.


https://newtelegraphonline.com/nigeria-releases-300m-airlines-funds
 

‘We Must Review Past Agreements before Concessioning Airports’

Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority

The Federal Government has been urged to review past concession agreements and address its sticking points before giving airports out to new investors.
Besides, concerned stakeholders have also asked for a clear-cut master plan on airport concessioning; seeking details on aspects of the facilities that are for private investments. The stakeholders that recently met at an aviation conference in Lagos said settling old scores and clarity on what to do with the airports will given confidence to new investors and ensure better bargain for the Federal Government.
Former Director of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Engr. Harold Demuren, recalled that past efforts on concessioning have not yielded the desired result and lessons must be learnt in going forward.Demuren noted a classic case in government’s handling of the Nigerian airways and the plan to restructure the airline.


http://guardian.ng/business-services/aviation-business/we-must-review-past-agreements-before-concessioning-airports
 


ICAO Commends FG for Efforts to Develop Air Travel Sector

Olumuyiwa Aliu
President of ICAO, Dr. Olumuyiwa Bernard Aliu .PHOTO CREDIT: guardian.ng

The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) has acknowledged the Federal Government’s effort to reposition the aviation sector and set it on the path of growth.
President of ICAO, Dr. Olumuyiwa Bernard Aliu, in Montreal, Canada, said efforts in the area of capacity building, infrastructure development and security were preparing the sector in Nigeria and the region for growth.
Aliu, while receiving the visiting government’s delegate in Canada, expressed delight seeing steps being taken on a number of initiatives and activities discussed during his last visit to Abuja. He said: “I have taken note of all the efforts you are putting in place to advance these issues to raise the level of aviation development in Nigeria and in the region.


“In particular in the area of capacity building, I have read many times your reference with the need of Nigeria to have an aviation university. You have also been talking about the need to enhance the level of training in Zaria. “From the information reaching me, it seems as far as Zaria, Nigerian College of Aviation Technology becoming a regional training center of excellence we are on course on that. We will soon have very good news in respect to that with the process of assessment,” Aliu said.In the area of security, he recalled that the result of the last audit was quite heartwarming with “Nigeria scoring over 96 per cent in our audit”.


http://guardian.ng/business-services/icao-commends-fg-for-efforts-to-develop-air-travel-sector


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