Nigeria aviation to get global reckoning soon-Expert

The former Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr. Harold Demuren, said that by 2050, Africa would be the centre place for global aviation industry; while Nigeria would be centre of attraction.

He made this assertion recently at the colloquium organised by Nigerian Travels Mart at Renaissance Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos titled: ‘Vision 2050: How to Fast Track Nigeria’s Aviation’.

He noted that Ethiopian Airlines earns 30 per cent of its total ticket sales from Nigeria, yet, Nigeria was not benefiting from the earnings.

Demuren said that for Nigeria to fully benefit from the continent’s attraction, Nigeria needed to invest in infrastructural development and develop human capacities.

In his own presentation, Alhaji Mohammed Magashi, an aviation consultant, said that Nigeria was in dire need of a national carrier and not a flag carrier to fully participate in the global aviation industry.

He pointed out that aviation industry was not competitive in terms of returns for investors, but described it as an enabler for returns for other sectors around the world.

Magashi emphasised that the defunct national carrier, Nigeria Airways collapsed because of political interference, which he said culminated with several air crashes.

According to him, there was no any airline around the world that had the numbers of crashes involving new aircraft like the former national carrier, noting that accidents in aviation do not just occur without planning.

He said: “There was no airline in the world that crashes new airplanes like Nigeria Airways. In aviation, accidents are always planed from the outset. 95 per cent of aviation accidents in Nigeria are caused by human errors.

He argued that the re-establishment of a national carrier for Nigeria would lead to creation of leasing companies, creation of maintenance hangars and reduce capital flights out of the country.

He urged the government to eschew federal character especially at the executive management status and called for open and transparent mechanism.