Finally, Nigeria Air gets air transport licence

The proposed national carrier for Nigeria, Nigeria Air, may be kicking off soon as
the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) will on Monday present the airline with Air Transport Licence (ATL).

The licence will be presented to the interim management of the airline at the headquarters of the aviation regulatory body in Abuja.

This was made known on the Instagram handle of the Ministry of Aviation @fmaviationng which reads, “The @NigerianCAA will on Monday, June 6th, 2022 present the Air Transport License (ATL) to the interim management of the #NigeriaAir, Nigeria’s national carrier at the NCAA’s Corporate headquarters, Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja”.

The Air Transport License (ATL) is issued as authorisation to airlines to provide scheduled and non-scheduled services. It is one of the licenses received by airlines before they can commence operation just as they await the Air Operator Certificate (AOC) that fully guarantees them the right to begin air services.

Nigeria Air Limited, the country’s proposed national carrier had in April 2022 applied to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) for a license to operate scheduled and non-scheduled passenger and cargo services.

The company said this in a public notice as part of the requirements for granting an Air Operating Licence. The notice stated that any person or organisation with objection should make it known before 28 days expire.

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“This is to inform the general public that Messrs Nigeria Air Limited has applied to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) for the grant of an Air Transport License (ATL) to operate scheduled and non-scheduled passenger and cargo services within and outside Nigeria,” the notice reads.

BusinessDay had reported in April that the NCAA disclosed that the AOC of Nigeria Air, the planned national carrier is in process.

Musa Nuhu, director-general NCAA said the promoters of Nigeria Air have applied for AOC and the process is still ongoing.

Nuhu said he has no assurances yet on when the license would be issued because, like all other airlines that apply for AOC, there are some issues that are not completely under the purview of the NCAA such as seeking security clearance for the applicant.

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha

Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha is the Aviation Correspondent at BusinessDay Media Limited, publishers of BusinessDay Newspapers. She is also the Deputy Editor, BusinessDay Weekender Magazine, the Saturday Weekend edition of BusinessDay. She holds a BSC in Mass Communication from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka and a Masters degree in Marketing at the University of Lagos. As the lead writer on the aviation desk, Ifeoma is responsible and in charge of the three weekly aviation and travel pages in BusinessDay and BDSunday. She also overseas and edits all pages of BusinessDay Saturday Weekender. She has written various investigative, features and news stories in aviation and business related issues and has been severally nominated for award in the category of Aviation Writer of the Year by the Nigeria Media Nite-Out awards; one of the Nigeria’s most prestigious media awards ceremonies. Ifeoma is a one-time winner of the prestigious Nigeria Media Merit Award under the 'Aviation Writer of the Year' Category. She is the 2025 Eloy Award winner under the Print Media Journalist category. She has undergone several journalism trainings by various prestigious organisations. Ifeoma is also a fellow of the Female Reporters Leadership Fellowship of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism.