Nigerian CommunicationWeek

Airlines Rake in N304Bn from Tickets Sales in 2013

MMIA, Lagos

Both the foreign and domestic airlines with flying routes in Nigeria, in 2013, sold tickets worth N304 billion. And while the domestic airlines sold tickets worth N73 billion, on the other hand, the foreign airlines sold tickets worth 231 billion in the same year.

The domestic airlines were able to ferry 5 million passengers across Nigeria in 2013.

Capt. Usman Mukhtar, director general, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) disclosed these while delivering a keynote address at the 20th Annual  League Of Airport And Aviation Correspondents (LAAC) seminar in Lagos.

On the West Coast route, he said, 277,000 passengers were moved. In Intra – African route 437,000 passengers and on the Intercontinental route 1.4 million passengers were airlifted.

“All these were achieved with the domestic airlines operating a total of 63,000 frequencies across the country. On the West Coast there were 4000 frequencies, Intra – Africa 4000, Intercontinental 7300 frequencies.

He said that in recognition of the increase in the volume of passengers, the Directorate of Consumer Protection (DCP) has intensified efforts to process complaints and ensure comfort of air travellers.

According to him, Nigeria has therefore become an attractive destination for foreign airlines and ceaseless application for additional frequencies.

“At present Nigeria has Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) with 78 countries. However, some of these are not being utilised. In order to strengthen and widen our BASA with existing and new countries, Nigerian delegates will be attending an ICAO Air Services Negotiation Conference (ICAN 2014) from 17th – 21st November 2014 at Bali, Indonesia.

“As in the past, the ICAN Conference will provide States with a central meeting place to conduct multiple bilateral (regional or plurilateral) air services negotiations or consultations. It will offer participants excellent networking opportunities.

You can now agree with me that the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority through its robust regulation has been able to drive aviation to a very high pedestal of “development. The traffic will definitely continue to increase.

Earlier, he noted that in terms of policy thrust, especially from the regulatory perspective it is within NCAA’s framework to propound policy guidelines to drive aviation activities in Nigeria. All these policies fall under our instruments of regulation.

Nigeria is a member of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and therefore a substantial part of our regulatory instruments and policies are derivable for ICAO Annexes and documents.

In addition to these, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (NCARs), other legislations and conventions in line with the standard and recommended practices are used to provide regulation in the industry.

Enforcement and Sanctions are definitive recourse when there is a violation.

With these capacities, the DG said that NCAA has over the years been able to acquaint itself creditably with effective and efficient regulation of the aviation industry. A major testimony is the attainment and retention of FAA IASA Cat 1.

“In the ICAO Audit conducted in a few years back, Nigeria scored very high marks. There is an impending ICAO Audit again and I am sure no one is losing sleep over that as the Authority has proven to be equal to the task.

“The global average of compliance to ICAO Safety Oversight Audit is 60 per cent. All members have subsequently agreed that all African states should strive to attain 60 per cent by the year 2017.Let me just intimate you with the strategic objectives of the imminent ICAO audit.

“This is to achieve excellence in Safety, Air Navigation Capacity and efficiency, Security and Facilitation, Economic Development of Air Transportation and Environmental Protection. However, the date is yet to be communicated to us.

“NCAA has continuously strengthened its regulations by periodical review and training of personnel. This is why our staff can comfortably excel anywhere in the world. We have Certified ICAO Inspectors in our ranks. We have been able to restore confidence in the air transport operations despite occasional mishaps,” he said.

According to the International Airlines Transport Association (IATA), in the last few years Africa has contributed over 7 per cent to the world traffic. In Nigeria, almost all major cities have been interconnected by air link.

NCAA has recently given Operational Permits to Bernin Kebbi, Jigawa (Dutse) and Bauchi International Airports. These airports were able to airlift pilgrims for Hajj this year.

Mukhtar said, “It is instructive to note that due to the upsurge in number of passengers in Nigeria, NCAA has keyed into a new ICAO methodology designed to accommodate the increase in traffic worldwide. This led to the formation of Aviation Safety Block Upgrade (ASBU) Committee in Nigeria.

“The Regulatory Authority has evaluated and granted approval for Airports Security Program (ASP) at majority of the airports. Others are undergoing assessment for approval. This is expedient in the face of global security challenges”.

He also urged aviation stakeholders in the country to continue to partner with the Authority for greater efficiency.

 

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