Finally, Nigeria Air to Get Operating Licence Today – Newstrends
Connect with us

Business

Finally, Nigeria Air to Get Operating Licence Today

Published

on

Hadi Sirika, Minister of Aviation

The proposed national carrier for Nigeria, Nigeria Air will receive its Air Transport Licence (ATL) from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) today in preparation for it to start operation after it has obtained its Air Operator Certificate, (AOC).

The licence would 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 read: “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 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 AOC that fully guarantees them the right to begin air services.

Nigeria Air Limited had in April 2022 applied to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) for a licence to operate scheduled and non-scheduled passenger and cargo services.

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

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

READ ALSO:

Director-general of NCAA said the promoters of Nigeria Air have applied for AOC and that the process was still ongoing.

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

Nigeria Air had been expected to start operation since it was identified as one of the major projects of the President Mohammadu Buhari administration in the aviation industry.
Sirika had promised that the airline would start operation in June/July. 2022 and the obtaining of ATL is a positive step to actualising that objective.

The Ministry of Aviation recently reiterated that the airline would be driven by the private sector but it is the responsibility of the government to midiwife the national carrier but would only have 5 per cent stake in the company, the technical partner would have about 49 per cent, while the rest would be acquired by local investors.
However, industry analyst and former Commandant of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos (MMIA), Group Captain John Ojikutu (retd) expressed doubt about the planned national carrier.

He said his worry was that it might go the same way like the defunct Nigeria Airways Limited (NAL), saying there was nothing being done differently from the way the former national carrier was run.

“My fear about the national carrier is that it will go the same way as Nigeria Airways. I am not in support of it. How many African countries have national carrier now? South African Airways, Kenya Airways which are national carriers are having problems. It is only Ethiopian Airlines that is doing very well, but other national airlines are not doing well. Ghana, Congo, Cameroon don’t have national carrier, but they had in the past. If you say that the private sector will have 95 per cent, why not put the bidding out so that the private sector will drive it? Why are you midwifing it?” he said.

Also the President, Sabre Network West Africa, Dr. Gabriel Olowo, said it was only the Minister of Aviation and his team who could correctly tell if the airline was ready to take off as planned.
Olowo who is also the President, Aviation Round Table (ART) also noted that national carrier for any country was no longer in vogue, describing it as a “mere nomenclature.”

THISDAY

Auto

Yuletide: Chisco deploys new luxury, mini buses, top quality services

Published

on

Yuletide: Chisco deploys new luxury, mini buses, top quality services

…hails Tinubu for 50% fare rebate

Nigeria’s Transport Company of the Year, Chisco Transport Ltd, has deployed in various routes nationwide its newly procured new luxury and mini buses with the latest innovative features in the industry.

It assured the travelling public of safe and top quality services on all its routes this Christmas/New Year season, and beyond.

It stated this in a statement released on Tuesday, adding that the company, which had been one of the country’s front runners in long distance passenger transportation and logistics for over 45 years, recently inaugurated about four new branches in order to bring its services closer to its teeming customers.

It listed some of the new branches that had helped to boost service delivery this Yuletide season as in Awka, Enugu, and on Okota Road (near Cele Bus Stop on Oshodi-Apapa expressway), Lagos.

It stated, “This is in addition to embarking on a comprehensive maintenance of the existing fleet of buses in order to ensure they are in roadworthy shape for trips across Nigeria and the Lagos-Cotonou-Lome-Accra international route.

“Apart from advanced safety features like real-time GPS tracking and efficient safety systems, the new-look Chisco Transport fleet, featuring state-of-the-art buses, has all it takes to guarantee that passengers travel in style with their comfort and safety prioritised this season.”

It stated that the updated fleet had enhanced the popular Chisco 24 to 48-hour nationwide mail and parcel services.

All these, the leading transport solutions and logistics provider said, are part of deliberate efforts to ensure seamless and comfortable bus and logistic services to the customers during the 2024 Yuletide season and thereafter.

Chisco’s Head of Business Operations, Mr Buchi Ochuba, in the statement explained that the same commitment to ensuring safe and comfortable trips out of major cities and towns before Christmas, would also be deployed to return journeys in the new year.

He said that the management was aware that the huge investments the company had been making towards upscaling its services recently earned it the Transport Company of the Year at the recent Nigeria Auto Journalists Association (NAJA) Awards in Lagos.

Ochuba reiterated Chisco Transport’s resolve to sustain the high standards that earned the company an enviable reputation, as well as continue investments in safety and comfort of travellers that have earned it the confidence of the travelling public and the auto journalists’ award.

“We appreciate the fact that in adjudging Chisco Transport the Transport Company of the Year, NAJA must have taken into consideration the high standards of our services, the over 50 new air-conditioned buses we procured recently, the new branches we inaugurated, our customer reward scheme and other investments we made to enhance passenger transportation and logistics,” Ochuba stated.

According to him, everything is in place to make certain that the teeming Chisco Transport customers all over Nigeria and on the international route enjoy top quality services, adding “We wish them a wonderful Christmas and a highly prosperous 2025.”

Chisco Transport also applauded President Bola Tinubu for the gesture of subsidising inter-state luxury bus transport fares by 50 percent this Christmas season.

Drawing attention to the importance of infrastructure to the road transportation business, the statement further commended the President for the appreciable allocations for the sector in the 2025 budget.

“We, therefore, wish to urge members of his cabinet to put in more deliberate efforts to help the President attain his vision with speedy and prudent execution inspired by patriotism.”

On the current sharp increase in fares across the routes, the award-winning transport company blamed the situation on rising costs of maintaining the buses, as well as on the high pump prices of diesel and petrol.

The Head of Operations, however, added that at the peak of every Christmas season, long distance buses are almost empty during return trips, which leads to a situation whereby the fares for the first journeys are raised to cushion the losses incurred during reverse trips.

Continue Reading

Business

Naira exchanges N1,650/$ in parallel market

Published

on

Naira exchanges N1,650/$ in parallel market

Yesterday, the Naira appreciated N1,650 per dollar in the parallel market, compared to N1,655 on Monday.

Similarly, the Naira appreciated to N1,535 per dollar in the official foreign exchange market.

Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, showed that the exchange rate for the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM) fell to N1,535 per dollar from N1,537 per dollar on Monday, indicating N2 appreciation for the naira.

READ ALSO:

Consequently, the margin between the parallel market and NFEM rate narrowed to N115 per dollar from N118 per dollar on Monday.

 

Naira exchanges N1,650/$ in parallel market

Continue Reading

Business

Exchange rate ends 2024 at N1,535/$1, marking a 40.9% depreciation

Published

on

Exchange rate ends 2024 at N1,535/$1, marking a 40.9% depreciation

The exchange rate between the naira and the dollar ended the year at N1,535/$1 representing a 40.9% depreciation for 2024.

The official exchange rate between the naira and dollar closed in 2023 at N907.11/$1 thus depreciating by 40.9% for the year which compares to a 49.1% devaluation at the end of 2023.

READ ALSO:

Nigeria introduced several foreign exchange policies in 2024 as the central bank expanded on market-friendly forex policies to attract foreign investors.

Meanwhile, on the parallel market where the exchange rate is sold unofficially, the naira exchanged for N1,660 to the dollar when compared to N1,215/$ according to Nairametrics tracking records. This represents a 26.8% depreciation.

 

Exchange rate ends 2024 at N1,535/$1, marking a 40.9% depreciation

Continue Reading

Trending