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Airline operators seek review of BASA, other fees over meltdown

By Abiodun Fanoro and Chika Goodluck-Ogazi
05 February 2016   |   2:15 am
AS the country faces the challenges of economy downturn, due to the fall in the price of crude oil, coupled with the high foreign exchange rate, the aviation sector also has not been spared of the effects, especially the airline business with many airlines experiencing financial hardship to carry out their operations. Due to this…
Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, Nigeria.

Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos, Nigeria.

AS the country faces the challenges of economy downturn, due to the fall in the price of crude oil, coupled with the high foreign exchange rate, the aviation sector also has not been spared of the effects, especially the airline business with many airlines experiencing financial hardship to carry out their operations.

Due to this unfolding situation, the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) has called on the Federal Government for urgent review of all existing Bilateral Air Service Agreement (BASA) with other countries, so as to increase its revenue for the country.

The President, AON, Captain Nogie Meggison said this has become necessary, because of the sharp fall in the price of crude oil, adding that, aviation is a gold mine where revenue could be tapped to boost the economy of Nigeria. He stressed that the government needs to seriously look towards aviation sector as something that should contribute to the growth of the nation’s economy.

According to him:“We need to help ourselves right now. So, BASAs must be reviewed to make it mutually benefiting. I don’t want to wake a dead issue up again, where we said that when people are called to sign BASA, they come with aviation technocrats with 20 to 30 years experience on the other side of the table and on the Nigerian side not one aviator is sitting down there”.

“With our geographical positioning today given by god and the human resources that we have, there is really no reason as keep on saying that Nigeria aviation should not contribute for the first two years 12 per cent to our Gross Domestic Product (GDP)”.

He added: “Nigeria needs to begin to look at aviation as one industry that will contribute to our economy. It is painful and shameful, that 50 years after our independence, 60 years after African airlines association, our aviation is still in the teething-crawling stage.

“This is the time and the time is now, the time is today for Nigeria aviation industry to wake up to contribute. Nigerians are travelling. An airline did a turnover of $2 billion .Another one made over $2 million profit .Their most profitable route is Nigeria and Nigeria has the highest seat per mile rate anywhere in the world, but what is the mutual benefit of the BASAs that have been signed back to the Nigerian economy”.

“Meggison continued: “The world has said that they know the potential of Nigeria but what is Nigeria’s problem? Put in perspective; is it the regulator, is it the government, is it the airlines? If you put things right in the aviation industry investors will come.

“Aviation is a gold mine that can be tapped the same way oil was tapped when we went into Joint Ventures (JVs) with oil companies and Nigeria had the controlling share 60 to 40 per cent .If we take aviation the same way, if you make N2 billion in a month and 60 per cent of your passenger load is coming out of Nigeria, please come and let see how we can harness some”.

Meggison also disclosed that the operators had concluded plans to meet with government to request for the scrapping of some airport charges in order to reduce operation cost.

He explained that if some of the existing charges were retained many domestic airlines might close shop, saying the AON had alerted government that domestic airline operations might be grounded unless the operators were given lifeline through review and elimination of charges.

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