Nigeria’s aviation sector best market to begin airline – Nwuba rubbishes IATA

Dr. Alex Nwuba, aviation expert and president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association of Nigeria, said Nigeria’s aviation sector is among the best in the world to begin an airline business.

He disclosed this on Tuesday in an interview with DAILY POST.

Nwuba’s remarks come as barely two weeks ago, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said Nigeria, along with Afghanistan, is the worst location to open an airline business.

IATA had cited multiple taxation linked to high airfares for its claim.

Reacting, Nwuba disagreed with IATA, noting that Nigeria remains among the best in aviation enterprise.

According to him, airlines in Nigeria seem to be handicapped on how to maximize profit in the country.

He urged airline operators to focus on building domestic and regional markets.

“It’s the best market. Good evening. The airlines don’t just know what they are doing.

“Focus on building the domestic and regional markets and forget long-haul,” he told DAILY POST.

DAILY POST: Airline operators had blamed high airfares on multiple taxes and a hostile operating environment.

DAILY POST reports that in the last months aviation fuel known as JetA1 has catapulted; however, airline users in Nigeria have made a case for better airfares.

Currently airfares for a single one-hour trip to Lagos State stand at between N90,000 and N150,000, as aviation fuel stands around N3,000 per liter.