How ploy to halt Medview airline’s Dubai operations failed

The Nigerian government has rejected plans by the United Arab Emirates not to allow Medview airline, which has been scheduled to begin Lagos-Dubai flight by end of the year to Dubai terminal one but to Sharjah.

The airline was restricted by the UAE authorities who restricted the operations of Medview to a remote and less viable airport in the country, which was flatly rejected by the carrier and Nigerian government.

After Medview had filed applications to the UAE, backed by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the former wrote back to say they could only allow the Nigerian flag carrier to operate into Sharjah.

Speaking at an occasion to unveil its new routes, which include Baltimore, Washington, Houston Texas, Abidjan, Conakry, other routes and upgrading of four First Officers to captains Saturday in Lagos,

the Managing Director of Medview Airline Plc, Muneer Bankole said some countries tried very had to put impediments on their path to frustrate the carrier from operating outside the shores of Nigeria because of competition.

He described protectionism in airline business, especially for foreign carriers who have unfettered access to Nigerian market as very unfair.

His words, “The Dubai authorities said they had no space for us in Terminal 1 and instructed that we move to another airport in Sharjah. We wrote to the Federal Government. The government wrote a strongly worded letter to them to allow for reciprocity.”

Government said since they did not stop Emirates Airlines from operating to Nigeria, there was no reason why they should not allow Medview to reciprocate flight rights.

He disclosed that the Dubai authority eventually listened and yielded to government’s request that the airline operate to Dubai Airport Terminal One.

“We want to commend the government and the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika for helping to protect the interest of our airlines. The speed at which they rose to the occasion was highly commendable. I am very proud of the government that we have for taking this up with UAE.”

Bankole also disclosed that the ‘big boys’, which can be interpreted to be mega carrier on the lucrative London route are posing great challenge to the operations of the airline to London, but noted that the carrier has come to stay on the route which is about the most lucrative for the airline aside the West Coast route.

This scenario has given cause for concern on how Nigeria has been liberal in granting traffic rights to foreign carriers without getting anything in return, especially as it relates to domestic carriers.

Sirika recently ordered foreign carriers to recruit Nigerian pilots to be part of the technical crew of foreign carriers into Nigeria as a measure getting some positive returns for the country.

Over the years, Nigeria seems not to have taken aero political manoeuvrings seriously. The closest it came about was the stand-off between it and United Kingdom some six years ago when the British Airport Authority (BAA) had to stop Arik over failure to renew its slot at Heathrow Airport.

Tension was high as the Nigerian government threatened to stop British Airways from operating to Nigeria in what it described as a tit for tat policy of reciprocity.

The Nigerian government, through the NCAA, immediately filed a case against British Airways for price fixing among other ill treatment levied against Nigeria travellers.