Aviation Sector in One-year of Tinubu’s Administration

Chinedu Eze examines the milestones in the aviation sector in one year of President Bola Tinubu’s administration and the performance of Festus Keyamo as Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, within the same period

Nothing fundamental happened in the aviation industry from May 29, 2023 to August 16, 2023 when President Bola Ahmed Tinubu appointed Festus Keyamo as Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development to implement the agenda of his administration in the aviation industry.

Shortly after his appointment, the new minister undertook facility tour of major airport facilities and infrastructure, especially at the Abuja and Lagos airports to have a conceptual view of level of development in the sector.

First Efforts

By the end of former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration, what was left loudly uncompleted was the national carrier project, Nigeria Air. The uncertainty about the project hung like thick fogs and not without burning rage in the heart of many Nigerians who were peeved about how the then Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika deceived them with the arrival of a phony Nigeria Air flight.

After reviewing the situation, Keyamo made unequivocal statement and suspended the Nigeria Air programme, saying that whatever that would happen about the airline would be at the behest of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. 

With frequent hiccups due to several fire incidents in what is now known as the old international terminal of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos, Keyamo in September last year, ordered the relocation of all airlines from the old to the new Murtala Muhammed International Airport terminal in Lagos. While justifying his action, the minister said it was a complete disgrace to the country as a whole to continue the use of the old terminal, which became an eyesore, while the new terminal remained under-utilised.

“We have 60 check-in counters in the new terminal, and most are not in use. Why are we struggling with the old terminal that is smelly, leaking, and a complete disgrace to our country? That is why I said we should use the new facility. Just like it’s done in so many countries, we are going to do some emergency procurement and get buses so that we can, in an orderly manner, board passengers, disembark them, and also bring them to the aircraft for arrival and departure. We would do this as a temporal measure,” Keyamo said.

However, renovation has been going on at the old terminal, as the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) intends to fundamentally overhaul the infrastructure at the terminal because it has higher capacity and with growing passenger movement and new airlines coming to Nigeria, there will be need for the expansion of the terminal facilities.

Few weeks after he was appointed, Keyamo together with the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, met the host community where the second runway of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport would pass through. Agreement was reached on the compensation of the people of the community and the Aviation minister few weeks later flagged off construction of the second runway. The Minister who is strictly monitoring the level of work done said that the runway would be completed very soon.

Keyamo said last year that his agenda in the nation’s aviation sector was to ensure improvement and development of infrastructure for passenger convenience.

Speaking at a webinar titled, “Repositioning the Aviation Sector for Revenue Generation and growth: the role of legislation,” the Minister said he would optimise revenue generation in the sector.

According to him, evolving market dynamics and global uncertainties have necessitated the need to reposition the nation’s aviation sector for sustainable growth.

Keyamo said: “As a Ministry, our mandate amongst others, is the formulation and management of the government’s aviation policies, overseeing of air transportation, airport development and maintenance, provision of aviation infrastructural services and other needs.

“To achieve this mandate, the ministry developed an Aviation Road Master Plan which clearly defines what we need to do to achieve our objectives. It is also instructive to state that upon assumption of office, I have reviewed the progress made so far vis-a-vis the existing gaps. Accordingly, we are already looking at focus areas which are encapsulated in a five-point agenda.”

KPIs

One of the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) of the Minister of Aviation, is to empower Nigerian airlines to make them profitable and to make them have the capacity to operate international routes.

This was what prompted the minister to engage lessors, aircraft manufacturers and others who play critical roles in facilitating aircraft acquisition.

Keyamo wanted to remove the tacit blacklisting of Nigerian airlines by lessors and also to review the insurance premium paid by airlines for aircraft insurance, which is outrageous and offshoot of the blacklisting of Nigerian carriers on long term leasing (dry lease).

The minister’s efforts on this prompted the Chairman and CEO of Air Peace, Dr. Allen Onyema to commend the federal government for the commitment to help Nigerian carriers by agreeing in principle to facilitate ways Nigerian carriers can lease aircraft on the long term.

Onyema said that by that promise, the government has indicated that it is not paying lip service to its plan to provide lifeline and support to Nigerian airlines and a positive revolution in the aviation industry is now imminent.

Also, the Chief Operating Officer of United Nigeria Airlines, Mr. Osita Okonkwo had commended the minister, saying that the Minister had met with the international lobby group to prompt the lessors to remove Nigeria from their blacklist and this include Aircraft Leasing Group (ALG), comprising the two largest aircraft makers, Airbus and Boeing.

It was learnt this was one of the reasons why the Minister embarked on the bilateral working visit to France few months ago.

Air Peace London Flight

When Keyamo became the Minister of Aviation he pushed Air Peace process to fly to London from Lagos forward by travelling to the UK and to meet relevant authorities to ensure that the Nigerian carrier got approval and certification to start the London flights.

During the inaugural flight of Air Peace to London, Keyamo said: “The most important reason why Nigerians should fly Air Peace is that there would be no problem of trapped funds because it is a local company; so, it won’t need to repatriate money through the CBN. The airlines that come to Nigeria – what we experience is massive repatriation of funds that puts pressure on the naira because they have to seek dollars to repatriate revenues earned from the sale of tickets. So, it eases the pressure on the naira because this is a Nigerian company that deals in naira. We as a government must ensure that local carriers that want to embark on international flights must have access to aircraft on dry leases. If they don’t have it, it will be difficult to sustain international routes.”

Air Safety

The Minister of Aviation has made significant efforts to improve air safety. Safety in Nigeria’s airspace is guided by effective regulations, navigational infrastructure and airlines operating efficiently.

The minister has initiated efforts to ensure that the right facilities and equipment are deployed in the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA). He signed agreement with Thales of France when he visited Toulouse recently to ensure proper and effective maintenance of the Total Radar Coverage of Nigeria (TRACON). 

Under the Minister, work has resumed for the completion of the Aeronautical Information Service (AIS) project and he has directed that more training should be conducted for Air Traffic Controllers and aeronautical engineers.

He is also attending to the request of Air Traffic Controllers that they need more hands to effectively man the airspace. Recently, the Minister reiterated his commitment to ensuring highest standards of safety, efficiency, and reliability for air travellers, airlines, and all stakeholders.

He said he is committed to strict adherence to air safety and would achieve this by creating enabling environment that will ensure that concerned authorities and airlines adhere to international standard and accepted practices. 

Keyamo made this known recently during his speech at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in Montreal, Canada.

In a bid to reinforce the industry’s global standing, the Honourable Minister reassured all parties of his unwavering dedication to strict adherence to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) minimal standards.

One of the cornerstones of this commitment is the protection of operators within the industry.

“The office of the Minister emphasises its role as a facilitator, working collaboratively with airlines, service providers, and other stakeholders to create an environment conducive to growth and sustainability,” he said.

Industry Needs

However, the Managing Director of Flight and Logistics Solutions Limited, Amos Akpan said that in addition to what the government is doing, the minister must look at these priorities.

“The government should get a guaranteed means for operators to access funds on single digit interest rates and a minimum tenor of 7 to 15 years. They should encourage existing Maintenance Repairs and Overhaul Organizations to get more space and equipments to accommodate aircraft operated by Nigerian airlines. I’m referring to the existing MROs that are certified by NCAA and are currently carrying out category A to C maintenance on aircraft operated by Nigerian airlines.

“There should be functioning and verifiable Total Radar Coverage of Nigerian (TRACON)for the airspace; certification of airports in Nigeria by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). Each airport classified in accordance to status of infrastructures and facilities provided. Government should align the training curriculum of Nigerian College of Aviation Technology Zaria to meet the manpower needs of the Operators in the industry; determine the personnel and equipments NCAA needs to carry out effective oversight on the Operators in the industry and provide them. Too much gap currently exists. NCAA needs capacity to oversee compliance of aviation fuel suppliers, catering suppliers, handling companies, maintenance organizations, training organizations, travel and airfreight agencies, Federal and State Airport authorities, and the Airlines,” he said.

Akpan also recommended that here should be punishment for negligence and infractions by persons in office, noting that somebody must account for breaches and infractions in FAAN, NAMA, NCAA, notably for failure to do their jobs.

“This government should include in their key performance indicators monitoring and ensuring existing infrastructures and facilities are maintained, repaired on time, and upgraded. This government should set up  yardstick that keeps these facilities functioning at installed capacity, plus install intervention program for predictable return to service when any equipments breaks down. This government should change the concept of FAAN from, ‘doing favour to airport users’, to ‘making sure the end users of all their infrastructures and facilities are happy’. FAAN should strive to make every end user of their products and services happy. Make the airport easy and friendly for the users. Communicate and guide airport users firmly into compliance with FAAN procedures at the airport; don’t bully them,” he added.