Nigeria, Grossly Underserved In Aircraft Provision — Expert

An expert in the aviation sector, Dolo Umar, has said that Nigeria is grossly underserved in the provision of aircraft, with only 48 functional aircraft being operated by eight airlines, serving a population of over 180 million people with over 30 airports.
He said that this low number of aircraft was not unconnected with the challenges of securing favourable leases, as well as the maintenance and overhaul.
Umar, the Regional Director, International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), West Africa, who made this known while speaking to aviation correspondents on Monday, decried that West Africa did not have a single aviation leasing company, despite the obvious market for aircraft leases.
According to him, what the region had resorted to was to rely solely on leasing companies in Europe, North America and Asia.
He said that some airlines operating in the country, did not have enough aircraft, pointing out that some operated with two or three aircraft in their fleet, as this accouted of delays most times in movement especially when one of the flights developed fault.
The expert however urged both government and investors in the aviation industry to do more in investing on aircraft acquisition, adding that most of the aircraft brought into Nigeria are second hand aircraft that had been used for several years in developed countries.