In a recent chat with pressmen, the President of Aviation Safety Round Table Initiative (ASRTI), Dr. Gbenga Olowo commended the Federal Government (FG) for showing unflinching support for Nigeria’s flag carriers in the past, and asked it to do same in matters of like nature arising in relation to stipulations contained in the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA).
According to Olowo, “The weight thrown by Government on Air Peace/Emirates commercial negotiations in the UAE disagreement is a confirmation that Nigeria already endorsed that flag carrier by throwing its weight behind it. Commendable aero-politics indeed. It was so with Arik Air before its demise.”
Using the above episodes as reference points, the ASRTI chief expressed his wish that the FG will “deploy the same steam to sanitize all the routes posing negative trade balances to Nigeria vis-à-vis the BASA till date.” In his opinion, “Government should go its full hull to all destinations served by all countries hitherto”, as this will prepare the way for the proliferation of Nigerian flag carriers.
Sharing his thoughts on the flag/national carrier dichotomy, Olowo was of the opinion that having an increased number of stronger, globally competitive and more efficient Nigerian flag carriers will do more for the Nigerian aviation industry than speculating on the possible birth of a national carrier.
