Minister of state, aviation, Hadi Sirika, says a private sector driven national carrier and establishment of a Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility are key for the industry to rejuvenate and thrive. This is coming few days after Aero Contractors and FirstNation Airlines were grounded by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) for having only one serviceable aircraft, which contradicts the NCAA regulation that stipulates that no airline operator shall carry out schedule commercial operations with only one aircraft.
The absence of MRO in Nigeria is squeezing the airlines, as the inability of airlines to source dollars is making it difficult for them to do their major checks and repair their aircraft abroad. The minister went further to explain, at a recent media briefing in Lagos on the state of the sector, that presently, the government had no money to implement these plans and so was calling on investors to come in.
“The planned national carrier, the MRO and leasing company will all be private sector driven and will go through all the processes an airline should go through before being approved.
“Right now, one of the major challenges of airlines is maintenance, as they seek hard currency in a bid to carry that out. Most of the time, airlines have to queue for a slot on a maintenance schedule. If we had an MRO, it makes things easier for the industry,” the minister said.
He also addressed the plight of the ex-workers of the now liquidated Nigeria Airways, saying the President was aware and was sourcing funds to offset their backlog of gratuities. He reiterated that the government was bent on concessioning the airports, adding that the misconception that government was selling the airports or privatising them was wrong.
According to Sirika, the airports have dilapidated so badly that it will take a major investor to come in and turn it around, as the facilities are poor, thus the urgent need to concession them.
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