Nigerian Privates Go International?

[Rani]

Press chit-chat or imminent govt. policy?




Govt okays regional, international routes fordomestic airlines

By Kenneth Ehigiator
Thursday, January 29, 2004


LAGOS— THE presidency has directed the Aviation Ministry to approve regional and international routes for domestic airline operators in the country. This directive came more than twelve months after some of the operators, in response to government’s request, applied to fly such routes. A source told Vanguard yesterday that the presidency was no longer comfortable about the huge capital flight caused by the monopolisation of regional and international routes by foreign airlines. British Airways and Virgin Atlantic Airways currently fly the London route, while U. S.-based World Airways in collaboration with Ritetime Aviation until recently flew direct on the Lagos-New York route.
Similarly, the United Arab Emirate (UAE) carrier, Emirates, only on January 2, this year, commenced direct flight operation on the Lagos-Dubai route, where the Aviation Ministry flouted the 5th Freedom Right, allowing the airline to also shuttle passengers between Lagos and Accra. The source said the domestic airlines were also left out of the South Africa route in anticipation of the take-off of Nigerian Eagle Airlines, of which the South African Airways had been selected as the strategic investor. Nigerians travelling to other parts of the West African sub-region have been left at the mercy of such airlines as Ghana Airways, Air Gabon, Kenya Airways etc in the absence of a Nigerian carrier.
Although no airline had been pencilled for particular routes, Vanguard gathered that those to be designated would be the major airlines operating on the domestic front, especially Aero Contractors Nigeria, Chanchangi Airlines, al Barka Airlines, ADC Airlines and Bellview Airlines, which currently operates some regional routes under the license of Air Gambia.


Debutants spaceworld Airlines and Slok Airlines, which are commencing operation next week have also indicated interest to fly regional and international routes. Solk Airlines’ Managing Director, Capt. Ernest Bell-Gam yesterday told newsmen that his airlines had the capacity to operate on those routes, having acquired no fewer than seven Boeing 737-200 aircraft, while still expecting more in the range of Boeing 757, 767 and 747-400. The umbrella body of domestic airline operators, the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) had always canvassed designation of domestic airlines on regional and international routes, so they could make more money in hard currencies to break even.
The AON’s position was canvassed against what it called the harsh environment under which the domestic airlines are operation which, according to it, makes it difficult for the operators to break even.

[Skylion]

Anybody,- Nigerian or foreign,- who can provide more links and frequencies between West Africas major city, Lagos, and anywhere else in Africa should be given the freedom to do so. Potentially a major international hub/transfer point, Lagos has been starved of air services by the Nigerian governments restrictive approach to licensing. On Lagos/Nairobi there has been no Nigerian carrier for years, but Kenya Airways has been limited to 4 x weekly services,- and these are the only direct flights between the major city of W Africa and the major city of E Africa. This is ludicrous and not in either the Nigerian national interest or that of the potential customers. Lagos/Accra cries out for more frequencies ( so well done Emirates) as does Lagos/ Doula and a host of other possible city pairs. In the absence of a strong Nigeria Airways, open skies would give Lagos a dominant position almost overnight,- and at no capital cost to Nigeria.

[Boss Raptor]

'Fraid the reality is open skies would make the situation worse...many of the West African national carriers would collapse very quickly, WT, GH and a few others...unless they align with a strategic partner (as GH and WT have tried to do for several years) and of course collapse of the national carrier would be politically unacceptable. The airports/ATC also lack the infrastructure and development funds to handle an immediate expansion of services.

Can't see the new strategic partner for the intended Nigerian national carrier being too happy if the Govt. gives away the West Coast to the privates.

The reality also is that contrary to popular belief the load factors and yields on most West Coast are low, hence most routes are multi-hop, reliant on picking up/dropping off 20 or so pax. at each point (look at it, this is why there are so few direct/point to point services even between key centres). Major point to point routes will only support one carrier daily or twice daily at most. The remaining residual routes are only viable multi-hop 3 or 4 times a week. In the past these were served by GH and Air Afrique, with a little help from the smaller players like Air Senegal Intl. and Air Guinee. Any introduction of open skies will lead to more carriers competing for a fixed/finite market, less pax. for each, no one making any money...and so on and on...

Since the collapse of Air Afrique passenger loads for other carriers obviously have risen but only slightly. There are a few exceptions economic/geographic dependant 'airbridge' type routes such as Lome-Niamey or Dakar-Bamako, but again if you look at the load factors and fares/yields they are low and just about support the operation. Many a time I sat at BJL with BVU cancelling every other flight due lack of loads...

The private airlines are on very tight budgets themselves in most cases (all are running on very low margins) and would again have to find a strategic partner to expand with and share common infrastructure (such as CRS, sales offices etc. as BVU do with AF) with. Running international schedules is a whole different business model, set up costs, operating costs and infrastructure to just collecting the money at LOS (or even selling online as ADC do)

The result would be the local carriers acting as feed to their larger strategic partners, the established international players, BA, Emirates etc. A quite acceptable situation in my opinion but not acceptable politically for the existing W. African national carriers or for the aspirations of the independant carriers...when you are the minor partner your major partner takes the bulk of the revenues/profits :\

[Skylion]

The biggest problem W African governments have is that for years they have restricted the activities of local independents and foreign carriers alike to protect non viable national carriers. The cost has been a lack of air services throughout the region, with often days to wait for connections betwen major city pairs. The same was true, though to a lesser extent, in East and Central Africa until a few years ago. Once the frequencies and increased point to point services were offered the market grew rapidly. There is a huge untapped,- and unprovided for,- demand for air travel in West Africa for operators of both turboprops and 737 sized aircraft. A country with the size and wealth of Nigeria should have a booming industry with a high quality major carrier ( ideally not state owned) and several smaller ones. Protecting national carriers has almost always damaged other parts of the national economy and isnt worth it in terms of jobs, meeting customer potential demand and total economic activity.

[Boss Raptor]

...and a problem which isn't going to go away in a hurry...

with the Nigerian Govt. continuing to support WT in various new forms despite advice from the World Bank and IFC

with GH trying to work its way out of debts

with ECOWAS not being quite as liberal/open grouping as COMESA

with the francophile ECOWAS open skies treaty, the Yamassoukro Accord, not really been tested in battle so far

with the anglophile equivalent Banjul Accord not even finished/agreed or ratified

the best that is promised so far is dual designation in accordance with existing bilaterals with WT or its' spectre remaining first carrier

[Dotun]

Lets wait and see what happens. This is not the first time the Nigerian government would say this. Kema Chike (last aviation minister) said something similar and she even invited all the airlines to abuja to bid for routes.
However, from observations, a couple of politician are now getting involved in the airline business, so this one might be for real.

[AdamCG]

Somewhat related topic -

Was it a plane? Nigerian rescuers wonder


LAGOS, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Rescue workers in Nigeria have found no trace of a light aircraft that witnesses reported seeing crash into the ocean on Friday and now doubt whether there was a plane at all, officials said on Sunday.

Search operations were halted after local rescue workers and the South Africa-based Critical Rescue International searched in vain under the waves on Saturday for bodies and wreckage.

"We are tired of looking at water. We are now convinced that there was no plane crash," Emmanuel Ijewere, president of the Nigerian Red Cross told Reuters.

Witnesses said on Friday that they saw a small plane wobble in the air for several minutes, before smashing into the ocean where it submerged completely.

But Nigeria's Aviation Ministry said that after conducting a series of checks with relevant bodies, it still had no lead on the reported crash. Air traffic controllers in Lagos had no knowledge of the plane's presence at the time of the crash.

The country's aviation watchdog, the Nigeria Aviation Safety Initiative (NASI), said on Sunday the crashed object had been classified as an Unidentified Flying Object (UFO).

Captain Jerry Agbeyegbe, executive director of NASI, urged the government to intensify the search with more sophisticated equipment to determine the veracity of the witnesses' claims.

"Certainly an object was sighted crashing into the ocean, we have termed it for now as a UFO," Agbeyegbe told Reuters.

"We have advised government to intensify (the) search until we are absolutely sure that it was not a plane."

Industry experts have blamed the mystery on the deplorable state of aviation in the world's seventh largest oil exporter.

Nigeria's worst air crash in the past 20 years occurred in November 1996, when a Boeing 727 flying from Port Harcourt to Lagos crashed, killing all 142 passengers and nine crew.

In May 2002, a BAC 1-11-500 operated by EAS Airlines crashed in the northern city of Kano, killing more than 100 people on board an on the ground.