Aviation experts under the aegis of Aviation safety Round Table
Initiative on Thursday urged the Federal Government to as a matter of emergency
designate three domestic carrier as national carrier.
The
experts after a meeting in Lagos to examine the myriad of challenges confronting
the sector also called for the setting up of an Aviation Development Fund (
ADF), which will replace the existing five per cent ticket sales charge
collected by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority( NCAA).
The
experts also called for the removal of Value Added Tax ( VAT), on domestic
travel, as such practice is only carried out in Nigeria on air travel
mode.
VAT
on domestic travel, they said is not implemented in any part of the
world.
They
also urged government to stop foreign airlines from selling tickets, as
practiced in other parts of the world, as it is the duty of travel agents who
are at the downstream sector to undertake such duties.
They
canvassed the convocation of a consultative stakeholders forum where issues
concerning the sector will be examined and a roadmap drawn for government's
implementation.
The
agitation for the designation of three airlines as flag carriers according to
them is the only way Nigerian carriers could compete with foreign airlines to
reciprocate the over 78 bilateral air services agreements ( BASA), 21 of which
are not utilized , but only five are reciprocated.
The
three airlines, the experts said should have a minimum of 30 aircraft , which
should development its fleet to 50 aircraft within three years .
President
of Sabre Travel Network, Mr. Gbenga Olowo said at the forum that the three
airlines to be designated as national carriers with a 50 aircraft fleet is the
only way Nigerian carriers could compete with the over 27 foreign airlines
flying into the country .
He
said if domestic airlines must compete with foreign carriers, they need to forge
consolidation with pooling of resources to enhance their capacity.
Hesaid
the current low capacity level of Nigerian carriers explains why none could
enter into major global airline alliances because of their limited
capacity.
He
said government should implement a single entry point for foreign carriers into
Nigeria, as the current multiple entry point is killing domestic airlines, who
are struggling to keep their operations afloat.
He
said government must go ahead to make the single entry point mandatory , as one
of the ways of stimulating domestic traffic to create a hub status for Nigerian
airports .
He
also canvassed the establishment of a " Fly the Flag Act", to ensure that all
travel of government funds are carried out on the designated flag
carriers.
In
his presentation, the former managing director of Nigerian Airspace Management
Agency (NAMA), Captain Roland Iyayi canvassed a three - tier licensing structure
for domestic airlines, which should be granted approval for operations according
to the scope and capacity of their operations .
Iyayi
said the challenges in the sector will not be addressed until government visits
the policy of deregulation and liberalization of the the sector with a view to
resolving the current distortions.
He
said the basics of the industry has to seriously addressed as airlines were
using wrong money sourced under suffocating repayment terms to finance aircraft,
which often times lead to the collapse of many airlines.
Iyayi
said until Nigerian carriers utilize the best business plan, they will not enjoy
cheap access to funding.
He
called on government to create a friendlier business environment through
reduction in taxes, reduction in the cost of aviation fuel as one of the ways to
assist domestic operators.
Iyayi
said: “Deregulation policy ought to provide the consumer a better choice. It was
fashionable at the time of Nigeria Airways Limited, but it brought about
fragmentation of the market, which did not have sufficient capacity , but merely
market presence.
“After
the 1984 liberalization policy, aviation is still in crisis, the major issues
have not been resolved. The load factor went down due to lack of
subsidy.
“If
the distortions occasioned by the effects of deregulation and liberalization is
not addressed, the industry will still be in crisis.
“In
Nigeria, our airlines should look towards consolidation , this way, they will
have cheap source of funding ."
Iyayi
also raised concerns over the poor oversight duties of the NCAA, affirming that
the authority is unable to meet its responsibility and sufficiently train its
technical personnel.
He
said: " Airlines are not making profit because the fabric of infrastructure in
the industry is not yet what it ought to be.
“Even
aviation fuel is taxed by FAAN. Even the NCAA cannot pay its bills to carry out
a thorough oversight of airlines. Imagine airlines paying the travel bills of
NCAA aircraft inspectors, who travel abroad to inspect aircraft.
“It
appears to me that the NCAA is completely docile . The NCAA has to fight to get
its autonomy , because the law provides for that ."
On
solutions to industry challenges , he canvassed the putting in place of an
institutional policy framework .
He
said there was the need for the re- examination of the deregulation policy ,
even as government must stop the collection of value added tax and other tariff
on mobile assets .
In
his presentation, an aviation security expert, Group Captain John Ojikutu said
the current threats to civil aviation in Nigerian airports may force the the
International Civil Aviation Organisation ( ICAO), to carry out a fresh of
Nigerian airports .
He
said Nigerian airports remained unsafe because of lack of security fence around
the airports , which only has perimeter fences.
He
said most of the airports do not have a contingency plan as well as airport
security programme to take care of threats to civil aviation.
Ojikutu
said: "There is a lot of corruption in the system. It should be mandatory for
every airport and airline to have their own security
programme.”
Source: www.worldstagegroup.com
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