Nigeria, others lose $1bn to foreign airlines written by Oyetunji Abioye(Punch Newpapers)

African airlines, including Nigeria’s lost over $1bn in revenue to foreign airlines in 2012, a transport

infrastructure expert with the New Partnership for African Development, Dr. John Tambi, has said.

He also said that Africa still lacked necessary infrastructure to ensure rapid and radical economic growth

and development.

In a paper presented at the ongoing 22nd African Aviation Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Suppliers &

Stakeholders Conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, a copy of which was obtained via email on Tuesday,

Tambi said it was time for African airlines to harness the potential in the sector.

He said, “In 2009, 78 per cent of all intercontinental flights were operated by non African airlines. Today,

more than 65 per cent of the intercontinental traffic to and from Africa is carried by foreign carriers. This

means that over 65 per cent of African intercontinental passengers do not use African airlines.

“As a result of this, in 2012 these foreign carriers made over $1bn in revenue from the African market.

“What is now even more frightening is the fact even the intra-African market that is the regional market,

which used to be the main domain of the African airlines, is now being encroached upon by some foreign

carriers.”

According to the NEPAD expert, Africa is experiencing its longest period of interrupted income growth

over the last three decades.

With Gross Domestic Product growth rate averaging five per cent over the last 10 years, the expert said

Africa now has one of the fastest growing regional economies in the world.

According to him, transport cost increases the price of African goods by 75 per cent.

The consultancy firm said  the development showed why the combined size of three biggest airlines in Africa,

namely South African Airways, Kenya Airways and Ethiopian Airlines, was not up to one-third of one airline

in the Middle East, the Emirates.

The Managing Partner, Ernst & Young, Mr. Zemedeneh Negatu, in another paper presented at the

conference, said it was time for African airlines to return to the drawing board and learn from the growth

strategies of airlines on other continents.

http://www.punchng.com/business/transport/nigeria-others-lose-1bn-to-foreign-airlines/

AFCON 2013: Jonathan Commends Arik Air(Leadership)

President Goodluck Jonathan has commended Arik Air for providing the aircraft that brought the Super

Eagles home from South Africa after the Africa Cup of Nations. A statement issued on Thursday in Abuja

by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati, stated that the president

sent a letter of appreciation to Chairman of Arik Air, Chief Johnson Arumemi-Ikhide.

In the letter, according to Abati, the president said, ‘your very kind gesture of providing the aircraft that

brought our gallant and
victorious team and officials back home from South Africa was an act of high patriotism worthy of note’.

The president expressed the confidence that Arumemi-Ikhide would continue to avail the nation of his

worthy endowments in the future.
He challenged others to emulate the Arik Air chairman's demonstration of enduring faith in Nigeria. (NAN)
http://www.leadership.ng/nga/articles/47718/2013/02/14/afcon_2013_jonathan_commends_arik_air.html

NAMA Begins Area Radar Control written by (Leadership)

The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) said it has put in place the necessary logistics to

commence area radar control in the country to further boost air navigation services and safety.

Area radar control is air traffic control service, provided for airplanes flying within the Flight Information

Region (FIR).

According to the managing director of the agency, Mr. Nnamdi Udoh, some air traffic controllers have been

trained to handle this operation at both Kano and Lagos area control centres for flight operations within the

nation’s airspace.

Addressing airline pilots at a parley in Lagos, Udoh disclosed that Friday, February 22, 2013, has been

slated for test run with the operating airlines while Friday, April 12, 2013, would be the implementation day.

While asking for the cooperation of the pilots, the NAMA boss said the regulatory agency is being carried

along to give approval for the immediate implementation of  service .

He listed benefits to be derived from the area radar control to include increased airspace capacity, improved

safety, reduced fuel consumption, reduced flight time and efficient flow of air traffic.

Udoh disclosed that other steps taken by NAMA to enhance air safety in the country are in the area of

uninterrupted power supply to navigation aids at the nation’s airports, maintenance as well as rapid training

and retraining of staff.

He maintained that the essence of the parley was  “to create a no-holds barred forum with airline pilots”

where all problems and challenges arising from their flight operations could be x-rayed and possible solutions

proffered even as NAMA was poised to provide a world class service with minimal incidents and zero

accident record.
http://www.leadership.ng/nga/articles/47601/2013/02/13/nama_begins_area_radar_control.html

Arik Air Rewards Customers With Valentine Low Fares written by NKEM OSUAGWU(Leadership)

Arik Air is extending love to its valued guests this Valentine season, with the introduction of new attractive

fares for economy and business class travel across all its domestic, regional and international routes.

Passengers booking these flights will enjoy super savings over previously published fares on the applicable

routes as part of the airline’s ‘With Love from Arik Air’ special fare campaign to celebrate the Valentine

season. Customers can enjoy even greater savings when booking seven days or more in advance, through

the airline’s website.

In addition, customers will enjoy a 30 per cent discount on the cost of the return leg fare of their journey

when they book return domestic flights.

The ‘With Love from Arik Air’ online fares follow on the back of the introduction of the ‘Book-on-Hold’

service last month, which allows passengers to book tickets online and pay later.

This is part of a raft of changes being rolled out over the coming months to enhance the customer

experience.

Dr. Michael Arumemi-Ikhide, Arik Air’s Global Chief Executive Officer: “We have always been a value

based airline, offering good value for money without compromising our safety and quality standards and

ensuring a warm and exciting travel experience on board our aircraft. Our size, extensive network in Nigeria,

combined with our superior product, gives us considerable leverage to offer such dynamic pricing.
http://leadership.ng/nga/articles/47372/2013/02/10/arik_air_rewards_customers_valentine_low_fares.html

Arik Flies-in Victorious Eagles to Abuja Tuesday(Thisday)

       

                                                                     

                         Arik Air's A340-500 will make the six-hour flight to Abuja from Johannesburg


Nigeria’s Super Eagles will arrive Abuja at 1pm Tuesday aboard a special flight laid on by the nation’s

largest airline, Arik Air, THISDAY can exclusively reveal.

In formed sources told THISDAY over the weekend that the team will deliberately kept in South Africa 24

hours after the curtains fell on the 29th edition of the African Cup of Nations because President Goodluck

Jonathan wants to personally be on ground to receive the victorious players, who did the nation proud by

beating the Stallions of Burkina Faso 1-0 in the final.

Jonathan, who had hinted that he would be physically present at the National Stadium, Johannesburg to

cheer the Eagles on, was unable to keep his promise due to some pressing diplomatic issues which took him

to Paris and London.

And although the President tried to make up for his absence in South Africa by sending a high powered

delegation led by Senate President, David Mark to represent him, it is clear that he wants to make it up with

the team by laying on a ‘presidential welcome’ for the Eagles.

According to sources, in keeping with the mood of the occasion, Arik Air will be using one of its flagship

planes, the Airbus A340-500 to convey the players and officials in comfort the six hours to the nation’s

capital, Abuja.

All things being equal, the 237-seater plane will leave Johannesburg’s Oliver Tambo International Airport at

9am South African time (8am Nig time) and is expected to touch down at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International

Airport at about 1pm Tuesday.
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/arik-flies-in-victorious-eagles-to-abuja-tuesday/139151/

Passengers decry South African Airways flight delays (The Nation)

The Nation reports that some passengers are worried over the delay in flights of South African

Airways (SAA) from the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.

Two passengers, Frank Adeluyi and Williams Oladeji, said the delays were having negative impact

on their business, warning that further delays might force them to seek redress.

Adeluyi said the problem is becoming worrisome.

Oladeji said poor service delivery was no longer acceptable in the global aviation community.

He called on the airline and the affected service providers to raise the bar of service to avoid any

unnecessary infraction on passengers.

These worries are coming on the heels of recent delays in the take-off time of the carrier, which

now ranges from 40 to 50 minutes.

According to investigations, the delay in flights is not connected with the ongoing renovation of the

Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, which led to the switching into new

processes and procedures for check-in. This,observers say, might have made SAA to change its

ground handler at the airport.

Passengers, it was learnt, are disturbed over the trend, which they said, was taking a huge toll on

their travels.

In the last one week, attempts to reduce the delays in flight have not abated raising concerns

whether the change in service provider for ground and passenger handling may be responsible for

the problem.

Investigations reveal that the switch from the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company

(NAHCOAVIANCE), PLC to the Skyways Aviation Handling Company Limited (SAHCOL), may have

caused some integration challenges that are affecting the operations of SAA.

SAHCOL, it was learnt, since it took over ground handling of SAA at the Murtala Muhammed

International Airport, is poised to render quality services, though some passengers allege that the

delays in flights of the carrier might have arisen because of alleged poor services by the firm.

Some passengers also alleged that equipment incapacity and service delivery might linger until the

ground handling firms in Nigeria prepare for the take- over of airlines with adequate operations.

However, a source close to SAA said the airline should not be blamed for the hitch.

He added that because the ground handling equipment at the airport broke down, officials of the

firm have been loading baggage into the aircraft manually.

An official of the ground handling firm, who refused to be named, said it was working hard to rectify

the problem.

NCAA won’t compromise aviation rules for any purpose - Demuren written by Sade Williams (BusinessDay)

Harold Demuren, director-general of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) said yesterday that Nigeria has the highest air safety standard in Africa, and that following this result, the country is currently assisting many African nations to achieve the highly coveted Category one (CAT 1) status.

Demuren  also stated clearly, that the NCAA would not bend aviation rules for anyone, for any reason.

The CAT 1 is a safety certification awarded by the United States Federal Aviation Administration (US-FAA) to countries that have clean safety records and have met all regulatory requirements, as prescribed by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO).

In  2010,  Nigeria achieved a Category 1 air safety rating from the U.S FAA International Aviation Safety Assessment (IASA) programme.

This means that Nigeria complies with international air safety standards set by ICAO, the United Nations’ technical agency for aviation that establishes international standards and recommended practices for aviation practice.

Demuren, while responding questions at the BuisnessDay In-house Briefing ‘, also observed that by 2015, Nigeria would displace some countries such as South Africa, from being the countries with the biggest fleets of private jets. This, according to him, shows the stability and trust Nigeria’s civil aviation regulations have put in place.

He added that even-though in the course of the fight to restore global aviation authorities and travellers’ confidence in the sector, the regulator stepped on many toes, it was however working in the interest of the nation today, because the continent still looks to it for advice and support in their quest for the CAT1 certification.

“We have letters from Angola, Mozambique and others, requesting that we put them through on how to achieve the highest safety standards; we are currently working with Ghana on how to also do that, because they need to separate their aviation agencies before they can achieve that status. We might also have stepped on many toes because of compliance, but that is why we are where we are today”, he said.

Demuren disclosed that as part of ongoing efforts at enforcing the standards, the Authority has made it mandatory for all domestic airlines to install the flight tracking and reporting system on board their aircraft, in order to monitor flight movements at all points.

“Our decisions are very painful, I have revoked about 40 Air Operators’ certificates in the course of the reform that led to the formation of the 2006 civil aviation act;  we affect peoples’ lives, we cannot afford to joke with safety standards”, he said.

Speaking on ageing workforce in the aviation sector, Demuren disclosed that it would be a disaster for the sector if the current ageing personnel left the scene without trained young professionals to fill the vacuum.

He however said that the authority is currently planning to allow more private sector participation in the training of aviation professionals including pilots and engineers.

“We look forward to having private flying schools where pilots will train to build up their flying  hours in order to be absorbed into the system as soon as they graduate”, he added.

“We have enough manpower in the NCAA but for the sector as a whole,  we do not have enough pilots and engineers. The air traffic controllers too are ageing, the young ones are going out for greener pastures, the solution is training and retraining and that is why we need to have a flying school to build up hours for pilots”, the NCAA boss said.

On airport certification, Demuren vowed that the Authority would not certify any airport in Nigeria until it meets the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) standards, adding “NCAA will not bend the rules for any purpose”.

“It is in the interest of the travelling public to certify those airports, but FAAN is yet to comply with those requirements”, he added.

He however said that contrary to reports that Nigeria has the highest charges, taxes and levies in the world, the country’s levies are still lower than some countries such as the United Kingdom and US.

He noted however that ‘too many leakages’ were responsible for the reasons people believe the charges are high.

“It is not true that the charges are higher in Nigeria, for instance, we charge 5 percent on ticket sales, UK charge 10 percent, US charge 11 percent but the leakages here in Nigeria are too many, we need to contain them”, he added.

On his outlook for the sector, Demuren noted that more airlines are expected to come into operations beside the expectations that cargo business will improve the lot of the sector as more terminals for perishable goods are being built.

‘’Aviation must work because it has become the engine room for the economy; we expect more airlines to come in, and the best thing that will ever happen to the sector this year is the remodeling of the terminals which we hope will change travelers’ perception’, he said.

http://www.businessdayonline.com/NG/index.php/news/76-hot-topic/51320-ncaa-wont-compromise-aviation-rules-for-any-purpose-demuren

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Global air travel growth to slow in 2013 – IATA (Punch)

Global air travel demand growth will slow again this year, but freight markets will recover from a decline in

2012, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Thursday.

“2013 will not be a banner year for profitability, but we should see some improvement on 2012,” IATA

chief executive Tony Tyler said in a statement.

 Global passenger traffic grew 5.3 percent in 2012, IATA said, with domestic demand up 4.0 per cent and

international demand up 6.0 percent. This year it is expected to grow by 4.5 per cent overall.

Although fuel costs remain high, airlines tightened up on spare capacity and spare seats in 2012 to protect

their profits, IATA said.

http://www.punchng.com/business/transport/global-air-travel-growth-to-slow-in-2013-iata/

ANA counts cost of grounded 787 plane(The Punch)

All Nippon Airways, the launch airline for Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner, said it lost more than $15m in revenue from having to cancel flights this month.

ANA said it was unclear as to when the 787 would resume commercial flights, making it harder to predict the longer-term financial impact of having the plane idle.

According to a Reuters report, ANA said it had not yet decided whether to claim compensation from Boeing, and it had no plans, for now, to change a growth strategy that has the technologically advanced 787 at its core. But it conceded that a prolonged grounding of the plane would impact that strategy.

“We have not decided on our right to demand damages, but naturally going ahead, if a damage amount is decided for the incident, we will negotiate,” Chief Financial Officer Kiyoshi Tonomoto said at a briefing on ANA’s quarterly results.

The 787, which Boeing says uses a fifth less fuel than traditional planes, opens up new international routes that ANA’s existing fleet can’t handle.

All 50 of the 787s Boeing has delivered to airlines to date are out of action as investigators in Japan and the United States try to find the cause of two recent incidents with the 787’s lithium-ion batteries.

The grounding of the global 787 fleet — ANA operates 17 of them — has forced airlines to cancel flights and reschedule passengers on to alternative planes.

ANA has cancelled close to 850 flights until February 18, affecting over 82,000 passengers. The 787 makes up around seven  per cent of ANA’s fleet, and the airline normally operates around 1,000 flights a day and carries 3.7 million passengers each month.

Despite the plane’s battery problems, which follow years of development and production delays, investors have kept faith with ANA. Shares in the airline are down just 3.2 per cent since before the emergency landing of one of its planes on January 16 — shrinking its market value by around $200m, the list price of a single 787.

Few analysts have revised down the carrier’s full-year earnings outlook, and the cost of insuring ANA’s debt against default for five years has halved since November.

“When you’re the launch customer there’s going to be problems, and when you add the previous Dreamliner delays into the mix, the reaction from ANA investors is just ‘Here we go again’,” said Shashank Nigam, chief executive of industry consultancy SimpliFlying ahead of the earnings report on Thursday.

ANA’s October-December operating profit fell by more than a fifth from last year, to JPY¥32.2bn ($353.6m) on revenue that nudged nearly four per cent higher to JPY¥379bn.

Neither ANA nor JAL, which has seven 787s, have said they have considered changing orders for 87 more of them.

For now, ANA has around 150 trained 787 pilots staying at home. As flights are rescheduled, the carrier’s Boeing 777 pilots are having to take the strain, with the extra workload.

“Obviously (the grounding) is a cost increase, but it’s not a massive change of fleets,” said a foreign hedge fund manager.

Nicholas Cunningham, an analyst at Macquarie Capital Securities in Tokyo, said ANA needs to replace its Boeing 767s, a medium-size aircraft with 200-300 seats. “The 787 is ideal for that. It has better fuel economy and as a medium-body aircraft offers flexibility for domestic and international routes,” he said.

Boeing chief executive Jim McNerney said on Wednesday the company stood by the troubled lithium-ion battery technology.

“We feel good about the battery technology and its fit for the airplane. We have just got to get to the root cause of these incidents and we will take a look at the data as it evolves, but there is nothing that we have learned that causes us to question it at this stage,” he said as Boeing reported market-beating fourth-quarter profits.

http://www.punchng.com/business/international-business/ana-counts-cost-of-grounded-787-plane/