The Nation Newspaper

Category: Aviation

  • Dana Air increases frequency to Abuja

    Dana Air has introduced more flight options from Lagos to Abuja and Abuja to Lagos with low fares.

    According to a statement by the airline’s Media and Communications Manager, Kingsley Ezenwa,  effective March 18, 2019, the airline will operate additional flights from Lagos to Abuja four times a day.

    Abuja to Lagos flights will also increase to four times daily.

    The statement reads: ‘’We are pleased to announce that we have introduced additional flights on our Lagos- Abuja –Lagos routes to provide more options, comfort and affordable fares for our teeming guests.

    Read also: ‘No plan to operate UAE flights from Port Harcourt Airport ‘

    “With effect from March 18,  2019, we will operate flights from Lagos to Abuja,  while flights from Abuja to Lagos will also increase.

    “Having yielded to the demands of our passengers for more flights to be introduced at specific time and the increasing loads on the sector,  we advise our passengers to  plan their trip, book early by visiting our website www.flydanaair.com to get best fares.”

  • Peacock, Turkish Airlines partner on cargo

    Nigeria’s airfreight sub-sector is set for a major boost as Peacock Aviation and Allied Services Limited teams up with Turkish Airlines Cargo to deliver efficient and on time cargo services.

    The strategic partnership with the Turkish mega carrier follows yearlong negotiations, which culminated in the appointment of Peacock Aviation as its Sole Appointed Cargo Sales Agent (SACSA) across the Nigerian territory.

    The deal guarantees shippers in Nigeria the lowest possible air freight rates on a wide range of general and special goods on the airline’s vast global route network.

    The partnership was unveiled on March 12 , 2019 during a luncheon at Spice Route Restaurant on Victoria Island, Lagos by representatives of Peacock Aviation, Turkish Airlines and Wema Bank Plc, which are the financial partners in the deal.

    Peacock Aviation was led by its Executive Chairman, Aare  Segun Phillips, while the Turkish Airlines team was led by the General Manager, Lagos, Mr. Yunus Ozbek, who was accompanied by the Cargo Manager, Mr. Sevket Battal. Wema Bank Plc was represented by its Regional Director, Mr. Wole Ajimisinmi.

    Announcing the partnership, Aare Phillips said: “This partnership was made specifically with our customers in mind; we want to enhance their airfreight experience in a consistent and sustainable way. Peacock Aviation and Turkish Airlines bring immense strategic values to the table.

    “We have a large customer base and a strong presence across Nigeria, while Turkish Airlines boasts a vast global route network and high technology equipment, and huge capacity all sizes, nature and types of cargo worldwide.  This deal is a win-win for everyone, particularly our customers.”

    Turkish Airlines General Manager, Lagos, Mr. Yunus Ozbek, said: “We have a longstanding relationship with Peacock, which is a very professional company. That’s very important for us because Turkish Airlines is the flag carrier of Turkish Republic, with 40 per cent  owned by the Turkish government for the Turkish people while 50 per cent is in the open market for everybody. We also have a lot of investors from all over the world. That gives us a lot of responsibilities.”

    Mr. Ozbek said Peacock was a natural choice in the airfreight partnership because the airline needed a dependable company that would meet its aspirations and status as a global player in the industry.

  • FAAN sets up committee for non- aeronautical revenue

    The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has set up a committee to map out plans to boost revenue generation from non-aeronautical sources.

    This is as the agency said that it is going through some processes that would eventually lead to the approval of its Aviation Security (AVSEC) to bear arms in 2019.

    Its  Managing Director,  Saleh Dunoma, disclosed this in an interview with journalists last week in Lagos at the agency’s headquarters at the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos.

    Dunoma said it was high time airport authorities on the continent diversified their revenue generations away from aeronautic to non-aeronautic, stressing that other airport managers across the world had already keyed into this.

    He insisted that the committee, which he chaired, consisted of relevant directorates and departments responsible for revenue generation for FAAN and would come out with a roadmap to enhance revenues for the agency.

    He declared that FAAN as an agency could not be left behind in the development of its airport infrastructure, stressing that the only way to achieve this was for it to diversify its revenue generation and tap into the myriad of opportunities in the system.

    He explained further that apart from Nigeria, other airport authorities across the continent were also deliberating on how to increase their non-aeronautical revenue services, which he said formed the theme of this year’s Airports Council International (ACI) held in Egypt.

    He said: “What we intend to do is to diversify our revenue sources. In Africa, we have not tapped into non-aeronautical sources and we are encouraging African airports to look at non-aeronautical revenue sources of revenue because aeronautical sources of revenues have limitations; they are highly dependent on flight operations.

    “The non-aeronautical revenues are being developed so much that they can be in pari-passu with the aeronautical sources of revenues. This is what we want African airports to develop. Some papers were presented to guide African airports to develop that area.

    “As a matter of fact, I just finished a meeting with my team. I set up a team on revenue generation and this team is chaired by me. It is very sensitive to the survival of African airports especially FAAN. We started the meeting today (yesterday) and we will continue to meet every week until we get to where we want to be.

    “We have not come up with a target yet, but the committee will come up with that. There are lots of departments involved, including engineering and commercial. By the time we develop some projects, we will have revenue targets that we want to achieve. This will be done by the committee.”

    He explained further that before the end of the year, AVSEC personnel would have been approved to bear arms in order to increase their surveillance of the sector.

    He, however, said that before this could be achieved, the department required some trainings and approvals especially from the National Security Adviser (NSA), stressing that background checks would also be carried out on some of the personnel before the approval.

  • ANAP elects new branch executives

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) branch of the Association of Nigerian Aviation Professionals (ANAP) has elected its new executive members at the union’s delegates conference held at the weekend.

    Comrades Benjamin Godwin and  Ige Abayomi were elected as the new Chairman and Vice Chairman.  Others are: Adebisi Saheed as Secretary; Ifoh Patience as women leader; Ugwu Chinasa as treasurer; Ogundele Funmi as deputy women leader amongst others.

    Read also: No Boeing 737 Max 8 flying in Nigerian airspace, says NCAA

    The election of the new executive members took place at the NCAA Annex at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos, shortly after the conference was declared open by the NCAA Director of Human Resources and Admin (DHR&A), Sanusi Ahmed Abbas who was represented by the General Manager, Human Resources, Anthony Ayasal.

    The excos emerged through a unanimous vote of confidence on the incoming excos who, before now, were Caretaker Committee members.

  • 737 Max 8: France accepts to analyse black box as Germany declines

    Ethiopian Airlines said Thursday that the black box flight recorders from the Boeing 737 MAX 8 that crashed with 157 people on board, have been flown to Paris for analysis.

    The airline stated this Twitter message.

    “An Ethiopian delegation led by Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) has flown the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) to Paris, France for investigation.”

    This comes just as Germany’s Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (BFU) said  it will not analyse the black box from the Ethiopian Airlines passenger jet which crashed soon after taking off from Addis Ababa on Sunday.

    This led to some uncertainty for a couple of hours before the French Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA) announced late on Wednesday that they would analyse the black-box flight recorders.

    The chief executive officer of Ethiopian Airlines, Tewolde GebreMariam, said  the black boxes from Sunday’s plane crash in Ethiopia would be sent to a “closer country in Europe” rather than the United States for analysis.

    Later on, an airline spokesperson reportedly confirmed that the country in question was Germany. However, just hours later, Germany’s BFU issued a statement reasoning their rejection of the request.

    “This is a new type of aircraft with a new black box, with new software. We can’t do it,” BFU spokesperson Germout Freitag told the media.

    Pilots have reported issues in US with new Boeing arrived in Paris for analysis on Thursday morning. The BEA is one of the world’s most active air crash agencies alongside the National Transportation Safety Board of the United States and has laboratories at its Le Bourget headquarters.

    A spokesman for the BEA said they wouldn’t be announcing the results. “Only the Ethiopian authorities will report on the progress of the investigation. There will be no press conference,” a BEA spokesman told reporters.

    The 737, which first entered service in the late 1960s, is the aviation industry’s best-selling model and Boeing’s top earner. The re-engined Max version has racked up more than 5,000 orders worth in excess of $600 billion.

    When Indonesian carrier Lion Air’s Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed on October 29 in 2018 killing all 189 people on board, Boeing pointed to maintenance issues and human error as the underlying cause, even though the plane’s pilots reportedly had been battling a computerised system that took control following a sensor malfunction. Ethiopian Airlines CEO also said that the pilots had complained about ‘flight control problems’.

    Just over  four months later, the Ethiopian Airlines crash on March 10 – killing 157 people – has triggered increasing global pressure on the manufacturer over safety concerns and software issues with the aircraft model. Ethiopian Airlines CEO  said the pilots had complained about ‘flight control problems’.

    The day after the crash, without referring to Ethiopian tragedy directly, Boeing Corporation  said it would deploy a software upgrade to the 737 MAX 8, a few hours after the Federal Aviation Administration said it would mandate “design changes” in the aircraft by April.

     

  • Ethiopian Crash: Germany rejects analysis of black box

    Ethiopian Airlines said Thursday that the black box flight recorders from the Boeing 737 MAX 8 that crashed with 157 people on board, have been flown to Paris for analysis.

    The airline stated this Twitter message.

    “An Ethiopian delegation led by Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB) has flown the Flight Data Recorder (FDR) and Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) to Paris, France for investigation.”

    This comes just as Germany’s Federal Bureau of Aircraft Accident Investigation (BFU) said it will not analyse the black box from the Ethiopian Airlines passenger jet which crashed soon after taking off from Addis Ababa on Sunday.

    This led to some uncertainty for a couple of hours before the French Bureau of Enquiry and Analysis for Civil Aviation Safety (BEA) announced late on Wednesday that they would analyse the black-box flight recorders.

    The chief executive officer of Ethiopian Airlines, Tewolde GebreMariam, said the black boxes from Sunday’s plane crash in Ethiopia would be sent to a “closer country in Europe” rather than the United States for analysis.
    Later on, an airline spokesperson reportedly confirmed that the country in question was Germany. However, just hours later, Germany’s BFU issued a statement reasoning their rejection of the request.

    Read Also: Ethiopian airlines: families of victims steel themselves for journey to crash site

    “This is a new type of aircraft with a new black box, with new software. We can’t do it,” BFU spokesperson Germout Freitag told the media.

    Pilots have reported issues in US with new Boeing arrived in Paris for analysis on Thursday morning. The BEA is one of the world’s most active air crash agencies alongside the National Transportation Safety Board of the United States and has laboratories at its Le Bourget headquarters.

    A spokesman for the BEA said they wouldn’t be announcing the results. “Only the Ethiopian authorities will report on the progress of the investigation. There will be no press conference,” a BEA spokesman told reporters.

    The 737, which first entered service in the late 1960s, is the aviation industry’s best-selling model and Boeing’s top earner. The re-engined Max version has racked up more than 5,000 orders worth in excess of $600 billion.

    When Indonesian carrier Lion Air’s Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed on October 29 in 2018 killing all 189 people on board, Boeing pointed to maintenance issues and human error as the underlying cause, even though the plane’s pilots reportedly had been battling a computerised system that took control following a sensor malfunction.

    Ethiopian Airlines CEO also said that the pilots had complained about ‘flight control problems’.

    Just over four months later, the Ethiopian Airlines crash on March 10 – killing 157 people – has triggered increasing global pressure on the manufacturer over safety concerns and software issues with the aircraft model. Ethiopian Airlines CEO said the pilots had complained about ‘flight control problems’.

    The day after the crash, without referring to Ethiopian tragedy directly, Boeing Corporation said it would deploy a software upgrade to the 737 MAX 8, a few hours after the Federal Aviation Administration said it would mandate “design changes” in the aircraft by April.

  • FAAN sets up committee to boost non- aeronautical revenue sources

    The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has set up a committee to map out plans to boost revenue generation for the agency from non-aeronautical sources.
    This is as the agency said that it is going through some processes that would eventually lead to the approval of its Aviation Security (AVSEC) to bear arms in 2019.
    Its Managing Director, Saleh Dunoma disclosed these to aviation journalists yesterday in an interview at the agency’s headquarters at the Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA), Lagos.
    Dunoma said that it was high time airport authorities on the continent diversified their revenue generations away from aeronautic to non-aeronautic, stressing that other airport managers across the world had already keyed into this.
    He insisted that the committee, which he chaired, consisted of relevant directorates and departments responsible for revenue generation for FAAN and would come out with a roadmap to enhance revenues for the agency.
    He declared that FAAN as an agency could not be left behind in development of its airport infrastructure, stressing that the only way to achieve this was for it to diversify its revenue generation and tap into the myriad of opportunities in the system.
    He explained further that apart from Nigeria, other airport authorities across the continent were also deliberating on how to increase their non-aeronautical revenue services, which he said formed the theme of this year’s Airports Council International (ACI) held in Egypt.
    He said: “What we intend to do is to diversify our revenue sources. In Africa, we have not tapped into non-aeronautical sources and we are encouraging African airports to look at non-aeronautical revenue sources of revenue because aeronautical sources of revenues have limitations; they are highly dependent on flight operations.
    “The non-aeronautical revenues are being developed so much that they can be in pari-passu with the aeronautical sources of revenues. This is what we want African airports to develop. Some papers were presented to guide African airports to develop that area.
    “As a matter of fact, I just finished a meeting with my team. I set up a team on revenue generation and this team is chaired by me. It is very sensitive to the survival of African airports especially FAAN. We started the meeting today (yesterday) and we will continue to meet every week until we get to where we want to be.
    “We have not come up with a target yet, but the committee will come up with that. There are lots of departments involved, including engineering and commercial. By the time we develop some projects, we will have revenue targets that we want to achieved. This will be done by the committee.”
    He explained further that before the end of the year, AVSEC personnel would have been approved to bear arms in order to increase their surveillance of the sector.
    He, however, said that before this could be achieved, the department required some trainings and approvals especially from the National Security Adviser (NSA), stressing that background checks would also be carried out on some of the personnel before the approval.
    He said: “There are certain projects that we need to implement before we can start carrying arms. Number one, we have to get the arms. Number two, we have to store the ammunitions somewhere. We need to embark on projects that will enable us to have storage somewhere at the airport. Number three, we need to profile and train.
    “It is not everybody that will bear arms. This, we must apply. We cannot train ourselves. We have to be trained by those that have been long in the system; the State Security Service and the Nigeria police. Also, we want to make sure that we get certification from the office of the National Security Adviser. We have to go through these processes. As soon as we are through with all these, they can then be allowed to carry arms. We intend to do this before the end of the year.”
    On continuation of certifications of international airports by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dunoma assured that other airports would be certified very soon by the regulatory agency, emphasising that the exercise was at different stages of completion.
    He disclosed that Kano, Port Harcourt, Enugu and Kaduna airports were going through the certification processes.
    On the second runway project for Abuja Airport, Dunoma disclosed that the project was part of the 2019 budget, hoping that it would scale through the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP).
    “That has gone far. This is a big document here. The document contains the design and everything about the second runway. It’s in our 2019 budget. Actually, the consultancy is being processed. As soon as we get our clearance from the BPP, we will commence work on it. In fact, we have gone far on this,” he said.

  • FAAN gives eight international airlines March 31 deadline to move to new terminal

    The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has given British Airways, Turkish Airlines and six other international airlines March 31st deadline to move into the new international terminal at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

    The Authority said the relocation of the airlines would enable it commence renovation work at the old terminal.

    So far, out of the 13 international airlines operating in Abuja, five have moved into the building leaving out the eight.

    The airlines that have moved are; Ethiopian Airlines, Air Cote d’Ivoire, ASKY Airlines, Air Peace and Emirate Airline.

    The airlines that are yet to move are; Turkish Airlines, British Airways, Lufthansa, Africa World Airlines (AWA), EgyptAir, RwandAir, Air France, and Arik Air.

    This was disclosed in Abuja on Wednesday after Emirate Airline made its debut into the new Terminal by the Regional Manager, North Central FAAN/Airport Manager NAIA, Mr. Sani Mahmud.

    The Boeing 777 aircraft marked A6-EBJ landed at exactly 3:00pm with 176 passengers and 16 crew members.

    Speaking after the aircraft landed Mahmud said: “One of our biggest operator into Abuja, The Emirate Airline commenced flight operation into the new International Terminal today. It arrived with 176 passengers and 16 crew. The aircraft type is Boeing 777.

    “We have now five international airlines operating in the new Terminal out of 13 but we have met with the remaining airlines and we gave them 31st of this month to move into the new Terminal that was commissioned by Mr. President on the 20th December, 2018.

    “We believe we gave them ample time for them to have moved into the terminal and the old terminal is due for renovation.

    “So, we have given them till 31st of this month to move into the new facility and we the management of FAAN will commence renovation in the old terminal.”

    On whether there would be sanctions if any airline fails to move, he said: “We are confident that they will move because they have all been given offices and the connectivity is in place. So they will move.”

    On when renovation work would commence at the old terminal, he saif: “We hope that contractors will start as soon as the airlines move because the renovation work has been budgeted in this year’s budget.”

    He also disclosed that the Federal Government will come up with a policy on what Terminal C will be used for.

    One of the passengers aboard the Emirate aircraft was the immediate past Inspector-General of Police, IGP Ibrahim Idris.

    Idris who had been on vacation after he handed over arrived the country in company of his wife and female toddler.

    He commended the government for putting up the facility and expressed optimism that the facility will be maintained.

    He said: “It is a dramatic change. It is very good facility and I am very happy to see the change. I will advice passengers to follow the rules and not mess up the place. but I think it is a good product. Obviously, it cannot be compared to the old terminal at all. It is a great improvement and it can be compared to other standard terminals across the the world.”

  • No Boeing 737 Max 8 flying in Nigerian airspace, says NCAA

    The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) gave assurance on Tuesday on the state of aircraft flying in the country’s airspace.

    The NCAA said there was no cause for worry as no Boeing 737 Max 8 is presently in operation in the country.

    Its spokesman, Sam Adurogboye disclosed this in a statement.

    He assured the flying public of their safety, stating that there is no cause for alarm.

    He said : ” Presently, the accident aircraft type, Boeing 737 Max 8 is not in operation in the Country.

    “However, the Authority, in line with its Safety Oversight mandate enshrined in the Civil Aviation Act 2006, is consciously monitoring the development (s) with a view to take the necessary steps that will enhance the safety of all aircraft in operation within the Nigerian airspace.”

    Recall that an Ethiopian Airline B737 -Max 8 crashed on Sunday 10th March 2019 killing all the souls on board after which the Airline and some other countries have grounded the accident aircraft type in their operations.

    He further said : ” This is to assure the public that NCAA will continue to ensure that safety regulations are strictly adhered to for the safety of all in Nigeria.
    Our heart is with the Airline and families of the victims of the accident. “

  • Bi-Courtney alleges N250b loss on 36-year concession

    Bi-Courtney Aviation Services Limited, operators of the Murtala Muhammed Airport 2 (MMA2) has called on stakeholders in the aviation industry to prevail on the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to close the gap in its abysmal management of airport infrastructure.

    In a statement issued by the firm’s spokesperson, Eniola Ade-Solanke,BiCourtney alleged that FAAN, through its actions, has consistently breached its obligations in the concession agreement and has caused her huge loss of over N250 billion.

    This is coming as the private terminal  operator debunked reports that MMA2’s 12-year term was about to expire and government planning to take over the facility.

    The statement said Bi-Courtney remains a key employer of labour in the aviation industry and committed to providing an environment for strong corporate health without fear, pressure or prejudice.

    “MMA2’s concession has had to contend with seemingly intractable controversies shortly after the expiration of Obasanjo’s  tenure. While the BASL argues that by the concession agreement, all domestic flights emanating from Lagos airport, including the General Aviation Terminal (GAT) where Arik Air operates from would be handled by the company, the authorities resisted the move,” the statement read.

    For over a decade, the BASL and FAAN have engaged in a running battle over the concession. Several court cases, up to 30, were filed and the crises have dragged on. Bi- Courtney also went ahead to invest in regional operations, but up till now, the terminal was never allowed to operate regional flights, even though some of the airlines operating from the terminal fly to Ghana and other West African countries.”

    Setting the records straight, Ade-Solanke disclosed that it entered into a concession agreement with the Federal Republic of Nigeria, for the Build, Operate and Transfer of the MMA2 for 36 years, describing the terminal as the most well designed and run terminal in the country operating on very limited revenue.

    She stated that the clear provision of the concession agreement between Bi-Courtney and the government upholds the operation of the MMA2 terminal for an undisputed period of 36 years.

    She disclosed that since inception, FAAN has not complied with the agreement to handover the GAT which is a property of Bi-Courtney.

    Her words, : “The erroneous claims against the Chairman of Bi-Courtney in making frantic efforts in the Presidency to frustrate a takeover of the terminal is not unconnected with purported attempts to stir up a false sense of alarm and acrimony against the concession.”