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Tag: Air Peace

  • NANS roots for Air Peace

    NANS roots for Air Peace

    National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has declared support for Air Peace, saying we should rally behind an enterprise that embodies self-reliance and growth.

    A statement by NANS senate president, Akinteye Afeez, noted the arrival of Air Peace brought a change, offering competitive prices that made air travel more accessible to Nigerians.

    It noted the drop in prices by other airlines appears not as a genuine effort but rather as a strategic move for  competition.

    NANS said it is essential not to be swayed by short-term price reductions but to recognise the broader implications for the nation and the future of the aviation industry.

    Read Also: NANS declares support for Air Peace

    It called on Nigerians to support Air Peace and reject attempts to undermine it. “Supporting Air Peace means more than just choosing a flight; it’s about rallying behind a homegrown enterprise that embodies aspirations for self-reliance and growth.

    “Its entrance disrupted this status quo, introducing competition and affordability.

    “Together, we can ensure Air Peace continues to soar, not just in the skies but also in the hearts and minds of travellers,” it said.

  • Air Peace’s entry sparks airfare war on Lagos-London route

    Air Peace’s entry sparks airfare war on Lagos-London route

    Airfares on European routes have crashed considerably following the entry of Air Peace into the Lagos-London route with lower fares.

    The reduction in fares by foreign airlines, some experts fear, may be part of the unwholesome practices by major carriers to harass the Nigerian carrier out of the Lagos-London route. Air Peace’s inaugural flight was on March 30.

    However, some experts have noted that the reduction in airfares may be connected with the strengthening of the naira, clearance of the backlog of funds owed to foreign carriers by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and other market forces.

    The foreign airlines’ action is believed to be predatory.

    Predatory pricing is the illegal business practice of setting prices for a product unrealistically low to eliminate the competition.

    Air Peace unveiled N1.2 million, N1.4 million and N4 million fare offerings for its round trip on the economy, business and first-class cabins.

    Before now, major carriers including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic Airways, Lufthansa German Airlines, and other carriers were charging as much as N3 million for economy seats.

    But, the entrance of Air Peace on the Lagos-London route altered the stakes for the foreign carriers, which were forced to reduce their fares from N1.4 million as of last week to as low as N841,732.

    Besides European carriers, African airlines also responded with airfares cut.

    British Airways now goes for N981,848 ($787.99); Virgin Atlantic N1.1 million ($927.99) and Royal Air Maroc N569,422 ($456.99).

    RwandAir goes for N679,070 ($545.35); Ethiopian Air, N677,824 ($543.84); Turkish Airlines, N807,408 ($647.84); Air France, N1.1 million ($915.99), KLM, N1.1 million ($927.84), and Egyptair, N585,620.

    Before the foray of Air Peace into the busy Lagos-London route, a one-way economy class ticket from Lagos to London on British Airways went for N3 million and N11 million for business class but has since dropped to N1.7 million for economy and N6.8million for business class.

    On Lufthansa, a one-way economy class ticket from Lagos to London, which was N3 million, and N9 million for business class, dropped to N2 million and N7 million.

    On Virgin Atlantic, the same destination which cost about N2 million for economy, N5 million for economy premium and N12 million for business class now costs N1.5 million for economy, N3 million for premium and N6 million for business class.

    The Association of Foreign Airlines and Representatives in Nigeria (AFARN) debunked allegations that foreign airlines reduced fares to force Air Peace out of business.

    Its president Kingsley Nwokoma said the drastic fare reduction was not because of competition by Air Peace but due to a drop in the foreign exchange rate and the repatriation of trapped funds.

    “Competition is good but before Air Peace came on board, foreign airlines have been speaking to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the government on releasing low inventories. This discussion has been going on for a while now.

    “A substantial amount of trapped funds have been paid to foreign airlines and that was why foreign airlines released lower fares. The reason fares went up in the first place was because low inventories were shut down.

    “Now, the government has shown enough goodwill to make payments, so it is in the interest of airlines to also show some goodwill to Nigerians by making low inventories available.

    “To the best of my knowledge, CBN has cleared all the backlog. The only outstanding payments are the ones with the bank,” Nwokoma said.

    Air Peace economy ticket now goes for N816,130 ($655).

    Its Chairman Allen Onyema last night described the reduction of fares by foreign airlines following the Nigerian carrier’s entry into the London route as a “victory for Nigerians”.

    He said: “It is a victory for Nigerians who will now save billions of naira which they will otherwise have spent paying airfares. Such money can now be spent in our economy.

    Read Also: NANS declares support for Air Peace

    “Even if Nigerians don’t buy Air Peace tickets, I am satisfied that Air Peace’s efforts led to cheaper tickets for our people.

    “We have been the pacesetter for good and right pricing.

    “I support and am happy with the efforts to develop our economy by the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Administration.

    “The government has supported Nigerian investors and Air Peace in particular.

    “The government has done everything to support us. It is time for Nigerians to be patriotic and support Nigerian investments.

    “Africa must look inwards and support Africa. This is the way to go to grow the aviation sector.”

    In a television interview granted earlier in the week, Onyema said the London-Lagos route is no longer lucrative because airlines are slashing their prices to drive the Nigerian carrier out of the market.

    “The same strategy is being employed right now by some of the foreign airlines to drop the price so that people will now leave Air Peace and go to them.

    “Of course, it is a very devilish conspiracy. All of a sudden, other airlines are underpricing; which is below the cost of operation.

    “One other airline was advertising $100, one $350. If you fill-up the entire aircraft and carry people on the wings, it is not even enough to buy your fuel, so why are they doing that?

    “Their governments are supporting them because Nigeria has been a cash cow for everybody. Their governments are supporting them to do this and take Air Peace out.

    “The idea is to take Air Peace out and the moment they succeed in taking Air Peace out, Nigerians will pay 20 times over and it’s going to happen if, God forbid, they’re able to take Air Peace out.

    “What is happening now is scary and of course, even at Gatwick, are you given 100 per cent cooperation?

    “On the first day of the inaugural flight out of London, 24 hours to the time, they moved us to another check-in area other than the place assigned to us.

    “The place they gave us, the carousel was not working so when you check-in people, you need to manually carry the load to some 50 meters away to go and drop it somewhere else just to delay you.

    “No other airline faces that. If they take out Air Peace prematurely, this country will pay dearly for it 10 times over, quote me. Billions will be lost and there will be another heavy strain on the naira,” Onyema said.

    An industry expert, who pleaded not to be named, said: “Foreign airlines are crashing their prices because they want to bring Air Peace down. Nigeria has become very lucrative to these airlines.

    “They have been enjoying a monopoly on the Nigerian route, but now a Nigerian carrier joined the market they want to drive it out with a price war.

    “If they succeed, within 48 hours the airlines will more than double the prices. They will increase the fares by 300 per cent. Let them continue to bring down the prices. It is good for Nigeria.”

    According to him, what would save Nigerian carriers was patriotism and government support.

    He noted that when he worked in the UK, the UK-owned airlines were not buying aviation fuel at the same cost as foreign airlines and they were not paying the same airport charges as foreign airlines.”

    He urged the Nigerian government to find ways to support Nigerian carriers.

    A tour operator and travel management expert, Mr Bernard Bankole, urged Air Peace to brace for competition to remain on the route.

    The former President of the National Association Of Nigerian Travel Agencies (NANTA) said more shake-up in airfare prices on the Lagos-London route should be expected.

    Bernard emphasised that this move would compel foreign carriers to lower their fares or risk losing their foothold in the market.

    Highlighting the significant price difference, Bernard noted that while foreign airlines previously charged as high as N3.5 million for a return economy class ticket, Air Peace now offers the same journey for N1.2 million.

  • NANS declares support for Air Peace

    NANS declares support for Air Peace

    The National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) has declared support for Air Peace, adding that it was imperative to rally behind a homegrown enterprise that embodies the nation’s aspirations for self-reliance and economic growth.

    A statement by NANS Senate President Comr. Akinteye Babatunde Afeez noted the arrival of Air Peace brought a refreshing change, offering competitive prices that made air travel more accessible to the average Nigerians.

    It noted that the sudden drop in prices by other airlines appears not as a genuine effort to serve the public but rather as a strategic move for  competition. 

    Read Also: Air Peace boss blames high airfares on internal, external conspiracies

    NANS said it was essential not to be swayed solely by short-term price reductions but to recognise the broader implications for the nation and the future of the aviation industry in Nigeria.

    It called on Nigerians to  support Air Peace and reject any attempt to undermine it. 

    “Supporting Air Peace means more than just choosing a flight; it’s about rallying behind a homegrown enterprise that embodies our aspirations for self-reliance and economic growth.

    “Its entrance disrupted this status quo, introducing much-needed competition and affordability.

    “Together, we can ensure that Airpeace continues to soar, not just in the skies but also in the hearts and minds of every Nigerian traveller,” it added.

  • Air Peace boss blames high airfares on internal, external conspiracies

    Air Peace boss blames high airfares on internal, external conspiracies

    Chief Executive Officer of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, yesterday blamed external and internal intrigues for the previously outrageous high prices that foreign airlines were charging for international trips.

    Onyema in an interview on a national television attributed the fall of the naira to these airlines.

     He claimed that they were willing to buy dollar at any rate which put a strain on the nation’s legal tender thus contributing significantly to its decline.

     The Air Peace boss said the inaugural flight of the domestic airline from Lagos to London prompted its international counterparts to automatically crash their fares from N17 million to N5 million, despite the dollar rate remaining unchanged.

    Read Also: Emefiele and company

     He said: “It was a playoff of both internal and external conspiracies.These airlines were taking into the market a lot of money, chasing dollar every day, buying at any amount. It’s no longer CBN now. They take their money from their commercial banks, go out there in the market, buying dollar at any rate and that was putting a strain on the naira.

     “Now, Air Peace did this (brought down the price) and they crashed their prices from N17 million to N5 million, the dollar did not change! They were using dollar as reason for whatever they were doing to us.

    “The dollar didn’t change overnight, yet they came down to N5 million. They’re underpricing; some are advertising $350. That’s why I’m saying, ‘Congratulations to Nigerians’ on two levels.

    “One is, you don’t have to sell your house to fly to UK anymore. Two, the dollar has come crashing.”

    Onyema further urged Nigerians to imbibe and display patriotism at all times adding, “We’ve proved that if only we’re patriotic in this country, we can all do it. It’s not for the government alone to do.”

     The nation’s leading airline recently positioned itself to take a larger chunk of the Nigeria/UK passenger market by undercutting foreign airlines by 66 percent on airfares.

     It pegged its economy class ticket at N1.2 million on the Lagos-London route, while findings showed that foreign airlines charge an average of N3.5 million for economy class tickets from Lagos to London.

  • Lagos to London: Foreign airlines slash prices to compete with Air Peace

    Lagos to London: Foreign airlines slash prices to compete with Air Peace

    To compete with Air Peace, which recently started flying on the route, foreign airlines have further reduced their airfares on the Lagos-London route.

    Air Peace launched direct flights from Lagos to London on March 30, charging N1.2 million for a round-trip economy ticket on a route where other airlines were charging up to N3 million.

    Foreign airlines reduced their round-trip economy ticket prices to an average of ₦1.4 million last week as a result of the Nigerian airline’s move, which analysts and stakeholders had predicted.

    Investigations conducted on Wednesday revealed that a few international airlines have further reduced their costs to an average of ₦841,732.

    As of Wednesday when most flights’ rates were checked, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria‘s exchange rate of N1246/$1, Egyptair has further reduced the price of its economy ticket from Lagos to London to ($470) ₦585,620; Virgin Atlantic ($927.99) ₦1.1m;  Royal Air Morocco ($456.99) ₦569,422; British Airways ($787.99) ₦981, 848 and Air Peace London ($655) ₦816, 130 are the current prices for flights to Lagos.

    Read Also: Air Peace: Passengers not abandoned at Gatwick Airport

    RwandAir has pegged airfare to ($545.35) ₦679,070; Ethiopian Air ($543.84) ₦677, 824; Turkish Airlines ($647.84) ₦807, 408; Air France London ($915.99) ₦1.1m while KLM pegged its price to ($927.84) ₦1.1m.

    This development has meant that as of the first week of April this year, a one-way ticket from Lagos-London cost between ₦1.03m and ₦1.3m despite the exchange rates being as high as ₦1,250 per dollar.

  • Air Peace: Passengers not abandoned at Gatwick Airport

    Air Peace: Passengers not abandoned at Gatwick Airport

    Air Peace said yesterday its passengers were not abandoned at Gatwick, London Airport when it returned to Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

    The carrier also clarified that it did not engage in overbooking of flights, as those who could not meet up with the scheduled time arrived at the terminal when the counters for check-in had closed.

    In a statement signed by its spokesman, Stanley Olisa, the airline noted that the information circulating in some platforms were carried out by persons intending to misrepresent the situation.

    The statement read: “Our attention has been drawn to a video circulating on social media that Air Peace not only abandoned their passengers at Gatwick Airport, but closed their counter before closing time because the aircraft was overbooked on our London-Lagos flight on Monday, April 8, 2024.’’

    “This video recording was a deliberate and malicious attempt to tarnish the image of Air Peace.

    In the video, a number of falsehoods were claimed, specifically: Firstly, we closed our counter before time. Secondly, we overbooked our flight and our aircraft was full, hence we quickly closed the door and departed for Lagos.

    “Thirdly, take off time was supposed to be 12:00noon. We want to state categorically that the passenger, who the narrator escorted to the airport, came very late after the check-in phase was already concluded and the counter had closed.”

    “Gatwick Airport operates by slot timings allocated to each of the airlines operating out of this airport. The check-in operations of airlines are slot-based, and airlines take turns based on their approved times.

    “Once your slot timing is up, you must vacate the counters for the next airline’s utilisation. The check-in process ends at 09:00am, as advised in the Terms and Conditions section of our e-ticket and website, and the counter was vacated by Air Peace in accordance with our slot allocation at 09:55am.

    Read Also: Eid: Let’s rebuild together, President urges Nigerians

    “To ensure passengers do not miss their flights, we send them multiple messages at different times before their flight – 24hrs, 14hrs and 6hrs before flight departure.

    “Departure for this flight was scheduled for 11:10am, so all processes needed to adhere to this time.

    “It was also claimed that we overbooked our flight. The UK Civil Aviation Authority and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority can attest to the number of passengers on our manifest for the said flight. The aircraft left Gatwick with some seats unoccupied, so no overbooking took place.

    “Gatwick Airport has CCTV coverage showing the time the passenger arrived at the airport/Air Peace counter and the time the maker of this video got to the airport. The late arriving passenger duly paid the no show fee, was booked to travel on a subsequent flight, and therefore the issue was resolved at the airport. It is disappointing that a different version of what transpired has been circulating.

    “Air Peace will continue to do its best to meet the needs of our passengers, but we also require passengers to work with us to ensure they can travel to their destinations by adhering to specified times. As always “Your Peace is Our Goal” ‘’.

  • Lessons for ‘mock’ failures; Air Peace

    Lessons for ‘mock’ failures; Air Peace

    We are in the period of mock exams requiring urgent state and federal NUT-driven intervention with a POST-MOCK TEACHING ONE MONTH PROGRAMME IN EACH SCHOOL TARGETTING THE STUDENTS WHO FAILED. The failed students should be detained for after-hour classes and during holidays and tutored, not mentally tortured, for the systemic neglect and failure of adequate education support. Our SSS3 teachers must be praised for intervention and be especially morally and monetarily motivated and encouraged to put in the extra hours for poorly performing and especially economically poor students who cannot get extra lessons and who will fall through the education net. Such an extensive nationwide effort will increase the pass rate in national exams into the 60-70% and reduce the partially and under-education ‘exam-failure’ burden on society.  But time is already running out for our failing youth.

    The success of Allen Onyema’s Air Peace getting a slot in the UK reviving the almost ignored ‘reciprocity’ clause in all international airways’ arrangement is commendable. As the CEO said, it has been difficult for Air Peace in the UK and sadly even in Nigeria with unsupervised officials obstructing progress by not cooperating when all Nigerians should be proud of the Air Peace’s slot. No, it is not the moon landing, but for Nigerians, it is a major economic achievement as British Airways, Virgin Atlantic and others have already been forced to crash their cutthroat ticket prices.

    Yes, it is a post-independence economic colonialism that the Lagos-London route is the most expensive, per kilometre, in the world, just like our road construction costs. The foreign airlines ‘blamed’ high local charges for parking and taxiing, hotel bills for crew and ground staff, and hidden charges, as reasons for their high prices. But we use much cheaper ‘two landing and take-off’ European airlines which stop at Paris, etc. and hop to London, twice as many landings and take-offs. They pay the same landing and taxiing costs in Lagos as BA and VA, and also additional ones for landing and taking off in Europe and finally in London. BA and Virgin Atlantic planes do not have more leg room or better on-board services than the other airlines. [At six feet+, leg room is important to me]. So, could their argument be simple arrogant maximum-profit business sense?

    There is no empathy for ordinary Nigerian families seeking to travel for reasons of health, education and holidays. When Virgin first started, the story goes that it wanted $300/seat at a guaranteed 80% occupancy. Its local partners bought all the tickets at $300 but sold to passengers at just under the British Airways rate then of $5-700. This negatively impacted the philanthropic spirit of Richard Branson to help Africa and combat British Airways which had already paid almost $3.9m in damages and legal fees for shady business practices aimed at obstructing his business. If true, it demonstrates our own Nigerian attitudinal contribution to the airfare problem. Of course, the European airlines have upped their fares and are just reducing them now that Air Peace is operational. But Air Peace had predecessors like Nigeria Airways, Arik which all managed to fail.

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    In the early 70s, we proudly flew on Nigeria Airways ‘Summer Flight’ Holidays from university, proudly flashing our Green Passport at respectful London immigration officials and visited tourist attractions like Q Club in Paddington. Nigeria Airways died partly because of the civil servants and politicians’ failure to pay for their travel vouchers. Till today they hardly ever pay their legitimate bills. Look at the electricity ‘no bills paid’ problem hindering health care causing deaths in teaching hospitals and also in military barracks and Aso Rock. Yet instead of electricity corporations collecting the billions outstanding, we are asked to pay a fourfold increase in electricity fees in a ‘20 hour a day A band’. Where in Nigeria does anyone get 20 hours power a day?

    Of course there was serious corruption in the Nigerian Airways. In 1966, there was an enquiry into Nigerian Airways corruption by Mr Justice Olu Omololu, and in 2002, the Justice Obiora Nwazota Panel found N60billion  stolen in an orgy of airborne fraud. Google it for the accused leadership who freely stole millions of pounds. So, corruption is endemic.

    See the stillborn new Nigerian national carrier with spraying and de-spraying of a borrowed phantom plane but still no flight.  

    We know the federal government cannot be trusted to run an airline in Nigeria as it will again be run into the ground with huge debts passed to the citizens for non-payment of vouchers, salaries and equipment lease costs et cetera. This trajectory of fiscal incompetence and indiscipline is mostly endemic in almost all our Ministries, Departments and Agencies. High political and government officials with supervisory or oversight responsibility and the hundreds of   Directors, Deputy Directors, Board members etc.  will expect a free ticket for self and wife and seven children. The planes may face irregular diversion by NASS members for party and non-party activities like one giant air Uber taxi experience.

    Yes, government may own shares in an airline through pension fund, Sovereign Wealth Fund, and other legal means but the carrier should have an entirely professional board and hierarchy or we will go the way of the recently rescued NNPC.

    If government insists on running the new airline, there must be a strict ‘payment confirmation time frame’ even for emergency flights.

  • Air Peace denies leaving passenger at Gatwick Airport 

    Air Peace denies leaving passenger at Gatwick Airport 

    The management of Air Peace has denied claims that it abandoned a passenger and closed its counter for its Gatwick to Lagos flight on Monday.

    Mr Stanley Olisa, Corporate Communications Lead of the airline, stated this in a statement issued on Tuesday in Lagos.

    According to Olisa, the airline’s explanation became necessary after a video surfaced on social media alleging that it abandoned a Lagos bound passenger at Gatwick Airport.

    “The video has claimed that the airline closed its  counter before closing time because the aircraft was over booked on the London to Lagos flight, which is  false.”

    Olisa said that the video was misleading, malicious and an attempt to tarnish the reputation of the airline.

    He explained that the passenger arrived the airport very late after check-in phase was concluded and the counter closed according to the approved time of the airport management.

    “Gatwick Airport operates by slot timings allocated to each of the airlines operating out of this airport. The check-in operations of airlines are slot-based, and airlines take turns based on their approved times.

    Read Also: Lagos-London flight: NNIIF gives kudos to Air Peace

    “Once your slot timing is up, you must vacate the counters for the next airline’s utilisation. The check-in process ends at 9.00 a.m. as advised in the Terms and Conditions section of our e-ticket and website, and the counter was vacated by Air Peace in accordance with our slot allocation at 9:55 a.m.

    “To ensure passengers do not miss their flights, we send them multiple messages at different times before their flight, 24 hours, 14 hours and 6 hours before flight departure.

    “Departure for this flight was scheduled for 11:10 a.m., so all processes needed to adhere to this time,” he clarified.”

    He further said that contrary to the claim in the video, the UK Civil Aviation Authority and the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority could attest to the number of passengers on the manifest for the said flight.

    He said that the aircraft left Gatwick with some seats unoccupied, and so, no overbooking took place.

    “Gatwick Airport has CCTV coverage showing the time the passenger arrived at the airport and Air Peace counter and the time the maker of this video got to the airport.

    “The late arriving passenger duly paid the no show fee, was booked to travel on a subsequent flight, and therefore the issue was resolved at the airport.”

    Olisa expressed displeasure that a different version of what transpired had been circulating social media.

    He said Air Peace would continue to do its best to meet the needs of passengers, but also required them to align with the airline to ensure they could travel to their destinations by adhering to specified times. (NAN)

  • Lagos-London flight: NNIIF gives kudos to Air Peace

    Lagos-London flight: NNIIF gives kudos to Air Peace

    An Igbo group, Nkata Ndi Inyom Igbo Foundation (NNIIF), has congratulated the Air Peace team on its inaugural Lagos to London flight.

    In a statement by the NNIIF, signed by its National Publicity Secretary,  Nnedinso Ogaziechi, the group said: “The accomplishment resonates deeply as it echoes a long history of ingenuity and exemplifies the unwavering spirit of Ndigbo.

    “This historic milestone marks a significant leap for Nigerian aviation and undoubtedly paves the way for even greater milestones on the global stage. It is indeed a testament to the dedication, innovation, and entrepreneurial spirit that Air Peace embodies.

    Read Also: Triumph of Air Peace

    “We at Nkata Ndi Inyom Igbo Foundation are beaming with pride at this achievement. For many years, the journey between Nigeria and London has been a complex one, often requiring travellers to connect through multiple airports. Air Peace’s direct flight eliminates these hurdles, fostering stronger ties and facilitating the movement of people, ideas, and commerce. Your entrance into the very lucrative Lagos – London route with reasonable ticket prices has brought great relief to Nigerian travellers.”

    The group also expressed gratitude to Air Peace for the rebate it is offering Nigerian children studying abroad. “This is a rare gift to families who can now truly enjoy each other’s company during academic/seasonal holidays.

    “We are confident that this inaugural flight is merely the first step in a long and successful journey for Air Peace on the international route.

    “Once again, congratulations on this historic achievement,” the group said.

  • Air Peace and the Isi Agu imagery

    Air Peace and the Isi Agu imagery

    The management of Air Peace recently conducted its inaugural flight to London Gatwick airport in what seems a successful end to years of negotiations for the Nigerian privately owned airline to break into aviation’s most profitable route. Ironically, Nigerian passengers have been sustaining the other foreign airlines like British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Lufthansa, KLM etc. sometimes at very high costs in comparative terms.

    The aviation industry is a trillion dollar industry globally. Beyond just ticket sales, ancillary investment  earns countries and private investors billions of dollars annually. Duty free shops, local culture, fashion, transportation, culinary services, hospitality and tourism industries are all built around aviation. So in the real sense, it is not just about ticket sales, the industry is multifaceted and a huge employer of labour and a great foreign exchange earner.

    The fact that Air Peace got the approval to ply that route has changed the dynamics in the industry. Before their entrance, the foreign airlines were charging between 13-15 million and 3-5million naira for business and economy classes respectively. Within days of the announcement of a 4million and 12million naira fares  for business and economy class tickets to London, the other airlines crashed their own fares by more than half.

    Beyond the airfares, Air Peace also announced an additional 15% rebate for Nigerian students abroad who can now take advantage of low fares to come and join their families during holidays. This had been hitherto a huge challenge for most parents due to the depreciation of the local currency, the naira.  Many parents are ecstatic and thankful for the offer. Nigerian students’ enjoyment of student rebate sadly ended with the now defunct national carrier, Nigeria Airways.

    Most people are glad therefore that a private airline has offered such a relief to Nigerian students studying abroad who wish to travel home to reunite with their families. This is also a reminder of the magnanimity of the management of Air peace that has been consistent in bailing out Nigerians across the world from the start of the Russia-Ukrainian war, Xenophobic attacks in South Africa, encouraging the Super Eagles during the last AFCON,  Covid-19 lockdown to the war in Sudan. The airline’s management has always shown great patriotic spirit.

    However, the Roundtable Conversation finds it strange that despite the milestone achievement and the value that the airline has been adding to the aviation sector and the employment the airline has added to the country’s labour market, the Isi agu clothing associated with the Air Peace’s Chairman and CEO Allen Onyema’s ethnic lineage became an issue and has been trending on the social media.

    Some Nigerians have accused him of regionally dressing the crew members in the Isi agu cloth as a sign of his ethnic jingoism.

    The world is now a global village so the viral discussions, social media vitriol after the inaugural London flight in a way tends to  expose the level of ignorance and lack of emotional  intelligence of those who feel that engaging in such a distractive discussion is worth anything at all.

    However, the people that are pushing the warped narrative about the crew’s attire are victims of a socio-political environment that empowers the mindset of most Nigerians along tribal and religious lines. Truly the politicians are to blame.

    This is exactly why the Roundtable Conversation insists that we as a country must address certain anomalies in our body politic that have continued to impede development. The conversation must transcend the political platforms. There is a dire need for national re-orientation and a recreation of the sociology of politics and politicking in Nigeria.

    We must seize certain opportunities to address that which ails our nation.

    The Roundtable Conversation spoke with Dr. Omoniyi Ibeitan, head Media Relations Managements of Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), a scholar  and a frequent flier who in his bid to contribute to the African aviation development deliberately always chose to fly Rwanda Air from South Africa to London as a student in South Africa. To him, the success of Air Peace on the London route ought to be celebrated by Africans even beyond Nigeria. It is an African success story and the economic benefit is unquantifiable.

    According to him, first and foremost, it is a thing of joy that Air Peace, a Nigerian brand is flying to London and Nigerians flying public now have options rather than being left the only option of flying other foreign airlines on that route. It takes away some foreign exchange from our economy to continue to fly only foreign airlines.

    Air Peace to him is a proudly Nigerian brand that is complying to the government plea to the private sector to create jobs for the teaming unemployed youths in the country. What has happened is a credit to Nigeria. Their Gatwick destination is a non-issue as Rwanda Air also flies into Gatwick and they are doing well. Every Nigerian should be enthusiastic that the Nigerian Flag carrier is expanding its operation to London which provides more jobs for Nigerians.

    Read Also: Triumph of Air Peace

    Dr. Ibeitan insists that he is too excited with the choice of clothing for the crew. To him, as a communications scholar, the Isi agu attire for the crew by his reckoning is a masterpiece, it promotes an aspect of the Nigerian culture given that Nigeria is a multicultural society . It brands the organization in a more distinct and artistic manner. It is a beautiful imagery out there. Isi Agu particularly itself speaks to something that is profoundly evocative. It does not matter which aspect of the Nigerian culture it projects,  it is ceremonial.

    The idea of even getting the route is entrepreneurial and historical which is is associated with Isi agu so that imagery in communicating a brand essence is not something anyone should be discussing in the negative. It is an achievement every Nigeria should celebrate and no one should undermine the milestone and contribution of Air Peace to the aviation sector at national, continental and global levels.

    We equally sought the opinion of Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu Ojukwu, another frequent flier on the international routes, a lawyer, an entrepreneur and  Nigeria’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations World Tourism Organization. She too like Dr. Omoniyi is over-excited about the achievement of the management of Air Peace especially in expanding their operations to London.

     To Amb. Bianca, if Nigerians are complaining about insecurity fueled by poverty and unemployment, any private sector investment that creates even a single job is an addition and must be applauded. In the case of Air Peace, they have created thousands of jobs and the value chain is huge so the applause ought to even be louder.

    The global aviation market is one that is a great part of diplomacy, trade and politics so it’s a huge step into pushing Nigeria deeper into more economically profitable multilateral engagements. As a player who has been over a decade in the business, the London route at this time of economic distress can help Nigeria earn and conserve and the much needed foreign exchange.

    To Bianca, the distraction being caused by the argument over the crew attire, the popular Isi agu design is just a storm in a tea cup. No one should dissipate energy diverting attention to that. Aviation is about tourism, entertainment, fashion, culture and hospitality amongst others. The Isi agu cloth is a cultural brand that speaks to who we are and the deeper essence of our culture and it does not really matter which region it comes from, Air Peace is flying the Nigerian flag carrier, period.

    As Nigeria’s Permanent  Representative to the United Nations World Tourism Organization, any aspect of Nigerian culture and tradition being projected to the global community speaks to a deeper essence of our being as a people without the divisive rhetoric of those who only see negativity in our differences.  So really, we should and must avert our energy to the value an Air Peace brings to the Nigerian travelling public and the impact of the chairman, Allen Onyema’s vision and his efforts at putting Nigeria more on the world trade and tourism map.

    Each Nigerian carries a Nigerian passport and at all international destinations,  that is the identity we all carry. We are not identified by our ethnicities or languages that is more than 350, but any piece of the culture of each of the ethnic groups projected to the world becomes a Nigerian art piece in its totality so it is all a plus for everyone.

    We all should be excited that we now have our flag carrier  that is adding value to our lives through creation of employment and other value added services. The testimonies from passengers on the flight is so heartwarming as they talked about the excellent customer service and the Nigerian dishes and drinks served during the flight. All the culinary delights go to tell us how many jobs have been created for our people across the country. We can only wish the airline and its management success and future foray into more destinations across the world.

    Dr, Omoniyi and Amb. Bianca  each feel that it is time for Nigeria to shed the excess mental luggage that does not contribute to development and see the beauty and progress that always emerge from better managed multi-cultural and multi-ethnic nations across the world. The United States is a country of immigrants but the constituent ethnic nationalities have been able to unite and build a united nation bound by the constitution. Nigeria can take a cue and build a more united and prosperous nation for generation to come.

    • The dialogue continues…