Nigeria Aviation News Headlines for Tuesday January 3, 2017
Happy new year to all of us! The year 2017 promises to be a better year for Nigeria's aviation sector as the new safety rating by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) is indeed a confidence booster for the industry.
Please find the headlines below and follow the links to read the stories in full.
Nigeria Gets New ICAO Safety Rating
Nigeria yesterday attained another International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) safety rating, which now places it among the world leaders in the implementation of safety processes in its aviation sector operations.A statement by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) said the country has climbed to Level 3 State Safety Programme (SSP) Implementation Process. This categorisation is dependent on the ICAO, which tracks the SSP implementation process of member-states via its integrated Safety Trend Analysis and Reporting System (iSTARS). An SSP is an integrated set of regulations and activities aimed at improving aviation safety, which will be monitored through Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme (USOAP) Continuous Monitoring Approach (CMA).
Jet A1: Airlines Mull Hedging to Lower Cost
There are indications that Nigerian carriers may decide to enter into partnership with a view to resolving some of the bottlenecks that affected their operations last year.
Consequently, two airlines are planning on fuel ‘hedging’ to minimise the excruciating pains they went through that crippled their operations.
The carriers are said to be planning to build huge storage facilities where fuel can be stored. The facility, it was learnt, are to be built in Lagos.
Alternatively, fuel marketers could also help the carriers to store their product as long as payment is done in advance for the quantity of JET A1 they would need within a certain period of time.
Airlines Record Huge Patronage on S’East, S’South Routes
Domestic airlines are recording huge patronage on some local routes as most aircraft designated to fly from Lagos and Abuja airports to the South-east and South-south are fully booked on their economy class.
But the trend, occasioned mostly by a huge passenger turnout which overwhelmed the few aircraft in the fleet of most airlines, comes with its attendant hardship and frustration to numerous passengers on these routes.
According to Daily Sun , the non-availability of seats on economy class for scheduled flights from Lagos to Owerri, Uyo, Calabar, Enugu and Port Harcourt on the online portals of some of the local airlines.
Notable airlines where such seats were not available included Dana Air, Air Peace, Arik Air, First Nation and Medview airlines.
Where seats existed in the business class on these airlines, fares had gone up to between N45,000 and N60,000, far beyond what most passengers could afford.
Revenue Loss Looms Over Abuja Airport Closure
• Experts fault diversion of air traffic to Kaduna
• Minister meets stakeholders on Thursday
• Nigeria moves up in aviation safety rating
• Minister meets stakeholders on Thursday
• Nigeria moves up in aviation safety rating
Ahead of the planned closure of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport runway, Abuja for repairs in February and March, there is a looming loss of revenue by the aviation sector.
Concerned stakeholders, who faulted the alternative provisions that include diversion of traffic to Kaduna airport, said the move would bring much discomfort to air travellers and foreign airlines especially, forcing many to temporarily quit air travel to the northern part of the country.
With airlines and passengers quitting the region, revenue accruing to the regulatory agencies and ancillary services will drop, making required operations further difficult.
Niger Govt Offers Minna Airport as Alternative During Closure of Abuja Airport
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| Nigeria's Minister of State for Aviation; Senator Hadi Sirika Photo credit ; google .com |
- Aviation minister to meet airlines, stakeholders on closure
Making this known monday, the state Commissioner for Information, Mr. Jonathan Tsado Vatsa said all that will be required was for the dualisation work on the road from Minna, the Niger State capital, to Suleja to be fast tracked.
Etihad, Lufthansa Airlines Sign Pact
Etihad Airways and Lufthansa German Airlines have announced the conclusion of a codeshare agreement.
The arrangement is set to commence this month.
Under the deal, the German airline will place its ‘LH’ code on Etihad Airways’ twice daily non-stop flights between its home base of Abu Dhabi and Frankfurt.
The call sign will also be placed on its twice daily non-stop services between Abu Dhabi and Munich, the biggest city in southern Germany.
NDLEA Arrests Man who Hid Cocaine in Shoe Soles
Officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja have discovered parcels of whitish substance that tested positive for cocaine weighing 9.15kgs inside the soles of shoes.
The discovery was made in a shipment of shoes during inward screening of passengers on a Turkish airline flight from Sao Paulo, Brazil. The cocaine was industrially concealed in the soles of new footwears. It was the last arrest of 2016 at the Abuja airport with an estimated value of 3.8 million Pounds.
NDLEA commander at the Abuja airport, Hamisu Lawan, confirmed that the arrest was made during the inward screening of passengers and luggage on a Turkish airline flight from Brazil.
Peacock UK Clinches 2016 Outstanding Performance Award
Peacock Travels and Tours Limited United Kingdom, a subsidiary of Peacock Group, has again clinched global travel award in London, the United Kingdom.
The company won the 2016 Outstanding Achievement Award at the Carrier Preferred Partner Awards 2016 held in London recently.
The event is a celebration of the achievements of UK travel management companies in 2016. Peacock Travel and Tours were among three nominations for the 2016 Outstanding Achievement Award, in recognition of exceptional support and performance in 2016.
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