By Emmanuel Obisue
Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has said over 100 airlines have shut down in Nigeria in the last 40 years.
Speaking recently in Lagos during the 10th anniversary of Air Peace, a Nigerian airline, in Lagos, Keyamo while commending Air Peace for its decade-long resilience and growth in the industry, said the Nigerian aviation industry has a high mortality rate.
“I am excited to be here today for two reasons. First is that Air Peace has survived for 10 years and it keeps thriving and going higher. It’s not on the decline but actually on the rise.
“If you look at the history of airlines in Nigeria, it is difficult for them to survive more than 10 years and still look healthy. We have a history of great mortality of airlines.
“More than a hundred airlines have gone in the last 40 years, from Concord to Zenith to Bellview, among others. You will then ask yourself why they die off, I can keep mentioning them, more than a hundred of them, I have the list,” Keyamo noted.
The minister added that upon taking office, the current administration examined the trend, recognising that there must be underlying reasons for the high mortality rate of airlines.
In his remarks, Allen Onyema, Chairman of Air Peace, posited that his airline was established to create employment opportunities and support his country in providing jobs for the vast number of unemployed people. “That’s the only way we can eradicate insecurity in this country, by giving jobs to all,” Onyema stated.
Onyema also expressed his apologies to passengers for past instances where the airline may have fallen short, promising ongoing improvement in service.
Nigerian Pilot reports that Air Peace on Sunday put out a statement to debunk viral claims that it plans to double its one-way ticket price from Lagos to Abuja.
Addressing the rumors in a post on X, formerly Twitter, the airline clarified that the alleged price increase is false and did not originate from the company.
“We would like to categorically state that this information is false and did not originate from Air Peace. We have not released any official statement regarding a fare increase as described, and any announcements regarding our pricing would only be made through our verified channels. We encourage our valued customers and clients to rely exclusively on our above platforms for accurate updates and information on fares,” the airline wrote.