Pictures: Sirika meets ICAO President

Sen. Hadi Sirika, the Minister of State (Aviation) led a courtesy visit to  Dr. O.B. Aliu, the ICAO President after the ICAO World Aviation Forum 2016 in Montreal Canada.

Delta Partners Virgin Australia On New Route Network

Delta Airlines announced joint venture partnership with Virgin Australia  to launch nonstop service between Melbourne and Los Angeles in 2017.

The new route will strengthen the trans-Pacific network offered by Delta and its partner in the region.

“Delta offers a truly superior network of international partners out of Los Angeles,” said Ranjan Goswami, Delta’s Vice President - Sales, West Region. “Through our joint venture, Delta and Virgin Australia continue to differentiate ourselves as leading carriers in the U.S.-Australia market, from boosting our service to key destinations to mutually investing in a best-in-class customer experience.”

Beginning April 4, 2017, Virgin Australia will fly five times weekly between Melbourne and Los Angeles using Boeing 777-300ER aircraft.* The new flight complements existing service offered by Delta and Virgin Australia, who will together offer 25 weekly flights between Australia and the United States and round-trip connectivity from 230 destinations in the Americas to 49 destinations across Australia and New Zealand.

“The United States is a key market for Virgin Australia, and this enables us to offer direct services from Los Angeles to the three largest cities in Australia – Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney,” said Virgin Australia Group CEO John Borghetti.

Delta’s premium cabin Delta One, alongside Virgin Australia’s business-class experience The Business, which launched in June, distinguishes Delta and Virgin Australia as the only trans-Pacific alliance to consistently offer full flat-bed seats with direct aisle access in business class.

Delta has been the fastest-growing carrier at Los Angeles International Airport since 2009 and will embark next year on a relocation to Terminals 2 and 3 at LAX, enabling operation alongside Virgin Australia and many of its other airline partners. The $1.9 billion plan to upgrade and connect the complex at Terminals 2 and 3 will create a premier partner hub that offers best-in-class check-in, faster connection times for seamless connectivity and an industry-leading customer experience.

Delta and Virgin Australia currently fly twice-daily from Los Angeles to Sydney and daily from Los Angeles to Brisbane.

IATA introduces NewGen ISS

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced that the IATA Passenger Agency Conference (PAConf) adopted Resolutions supporting the development of the New Generation of IATA Settlement Systems (NewGen ISS).

"IATA Settlement Systems are the financial back office of the air transport industry. Since its introduction 45 years ago, the Billing and Settlement Plan  (BSP) has successfully facilitated the distribution and settlement of funds between travel agents and airlines, which totaled more than $230 billion in 2015. But the one-size-fits-all model launched in 1971 no longer fits today’s vastly different operating environment. NewGen ISS will ensure that IATA’s Passenger Agency Program continues to deliver enormous value to airlines and travel agents by providing more flexibility and options with greater financial security," said Aleks Popovich, IATA Senior Vice President for Financial and Distribution Services.

The Resolution text adopted by the PAConf will enable the introduction of three pillars of NewGen ISS:

A range of travel agent accreditation models that can better fit travel agent needs

IATA EasyPay - a voluntary pay-as-you-go e-wallet payment solution for issuance of airline tickets in the BSP, and

Global Default Insurance – an optional financial security alternative to bank guarantees for travel agents.

The PAConf also agreed to continue development of the fourth pillar of NewGen ISS -- a new risk management framework to enable safer selling and mitigate default losses in the BSP. A joint travel agent and airline working group was established to define a proposal by early next year. The related Resolution text will then proceed to the PAConf for voting in 2017.  "We are taking a working-together approach to this important pillar of NewGen ISS in order to respond to travel agent requirements for flexibility while creating a structure that enables safer selling and greater protection of ticket funds," said Popovich.

Firstnation Airways back in the air

One of Nigeria’s domestic  airline operators, Firstnation Airways is back in operations after a technical suspension of its services.

According to the Head of Corporate Affairs of the airline, Rasheed Yusuff, “We are delighted to inform you that our operation is back. Flight commenced with very strong passenger demand despite the break. This patronage reinforces the strength of our brand and the quality of our service. We received ground swell of support from the flying public during our maintenance break and this tremendous support has been humbling experience to all of us at Firstnation”.

Yusuff further explained that , “Since the Airline launched service in 2013 we have built a respectable followership and rated consistently as market leader on safety standard and schedule integrity on the routes that we serve. This reputation was reinforced by Firstnation’s achievement of IOSA certification (the airline industry global bench mark for world class safety standard) in 2015 within record time of twelve months. The achievement of IOSA certification by Firstnation in 12 months of application remains unrivalled in West and Central Africa.”

The Airline reaffirms her commitment to her flight operations and remains bullish about Nigeria’s economic outlook and her operations. We are currently working on expanding our fleet as well.

Sirika Moves To Pilot Nigerian Aviation To New Heights by Yakubu Dati

Last Tuesday, September 13,2016, the  Minister of State, Aviation, Sen Hadi Sirika landed in Lagos from a trip and immediately moved to settle a trade dispute between Aero Contractors and its workers. When he got to the airline’s headquarters, the situation had even become worse as the workers were on a protest, over the shutdown of operations amidst unpaid salaries by its management.

But rather than beat a retreat to take a rest on account of his long air journey, the minister immediately rose to the occasion and resolved the ugly situation.  He was not done yet, after leaving Aero head office, he had to make a whistle stop over, to inspect the new, state-of-the state airport terminal at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport ,Ikeja, that is almost completed by the Chinese construction giant, CECC.

Then, back in his office in Abuja, Thursday, barely two days later, he addressed a press Conference on the topical issue of Concession and Public Private Partnership, PPP Policy of the Buhari administration and inaugurated two key committees  that would pilot the policy implementation from take-off to ensure a safe landing.

At Aero Contractors airline which is under receivership, Sirika had assured the protesting workers that the Federal government would make sure that it addressed the problems confronting the airline. He said that it was the responsibility of government to create jobs therefore, the Federal government would not allow any business concern to die under its watch.

Said Sirika: “The primary purpose of government,  especially this All Progressives Congress, APC Government is to help to promote, nurse, sustain, develop and keep businesses afloat so that they can continue to provide services and employ our people. So it is not the government of APC that will kill jobs and close down shops.” He assured the staff and management of the airline that government would come up with a solution, which he said, “would be mutually beneficial to all of us, staff, the company and government itself.”

 Aero Contractors is under the management of Asset Management Company of Nigeria, AMCON, a government agency set up by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN to manage bad loan assets of Nigerian banks.

Sirika who is a professional pilot and aviation expert, is so passionate about the growth of the Nigerian Aviation industry. He understands first hand most of the challenges facing the industry having been involved with the industry in the past two decades both at a professional level and as a lawmaker in the National assembly where he served in the Aviation Committee in the House of Representatives and the Senate Committee on Aviation for some years.

Shortly after been named Minister, Sirika was able to get government approval of duty waivers on critical aviation equipment for domestic airlines. This policy would save Nigerian domestic airlines that were paying at least 5 per cent import duty on every spare part, about N26.5 billion per annum.

“This means the era of Customs holding on to airlines’ spare parts has become a thing of the past. One of the gains is that downtime will reduce because an airline can import an engine and within a day clear it  with Customs and on the second day mount it on the aircraft and start operations, ” said one industry official.

By the end of the year, five new state of the art, world class international airport terminals at MMIA, Abuja, Kano, Port Harcourt and Enugu are expected to be delivered to the Federal Government by CECC.

He fulfilled his promise to the aggrieved workers who agreed to sheath their swords when he returned three days later to engage the Management of Aero, Labour Unions, Airline Operators and Fuel Marketers and Aviation Correspondents in a marathon engagement back to back.

Sirika first publicly mooted the idea of airport concession which came as a surprise to many in the industry, as a way out of inadequate government resources, several months ago.

The Minister has also addressed some concerns of some stake holders over the concession arrangement. ”Contrary to the belief of many Nigerians, concession was not the same as privatization. Concession and privatization are not synonymous,” Sirika said.

He explained that under the concession arrangement, the ownership of the airports and other facilities remain that of the Federal Government, which may not be so with privatization.

He also allayed the fears of one of the labour unions in the aviation industry over fears that the concession would lead to massive job losses in the aviation agencies.

 Why concession?  “Our infrastructure in aviation and transportation is dilapidated. They are not ideal. They don’t attract customers. They don’t show our nation to be in tandem with global happenings,” the Aviation Minister said.

 The period of preparation of framework for Concession/PPP should not take too long.” Once we start, within 24 months ,we should be able to have a new Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Kano airports, which will create an opportunity that in establishing the national carrier, it will create more jobs and facilitate trade and commerce,” Sirika said at the press conference.

As a true democrat who served as Secretary of the APC think-thank which mid-wived the administration of President Mohammadu Buhari, Sirika spent the Saturday of 17th September in yet another engagement cutting across the umbrella workers’  unions of Aero, FAAN and Tourism practitioners under the auspices of NANTA.

This was preceeded by a major development in the sector where the United Nations (UN) decided to set up two Aviation Security (AVSEC) training institutes in the country. According to a statement issued by James Odaudu,  the Assistant Director, Press and Public Affairs of the Ministry of Aviation. He said:  “The Federal government’s vision and efforts towards turning around the aviation sector to meet global standards in infrastructure, safety and security has continued to receive worldwide acclaim at the highest level, with the United Nations decision to establish two Aviation security training schools in Nigeria.”

Industry watchers believe the UN’s decision also demonstrates the confidence of this respected international organisation in the able leadership of Nigerian aviation by the Aviation minister. There are also indications that the Aviation Minister may have been working quietly for the re-election of Dr. Bernard Aliu, the Nigerian-born Chairman of ICAO, the UN body that oversees the safety regulations of civil aviation worldwide.

 No doubt, Aliu’s re-election would be a plus to the prestige, respect and influence of Nigerian Aviation industry worldwide. Nigerian Aviation is expected to climb to new heights under the leadership of Sen. Hadi Sirika as he takes Nigeria to the global scene.

Yakubu Dati is the General Manager, Corporate Affairs, FAAN

Nigeria CAA Cautions on Samsung Galaxy Note 7

Following the recent ban on Samsung Galaxy Note 7 on-board aircraft by global aviation players, aviation regulatory body in Nigeria, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority is alerting aviation publics to take precautions.  Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has advised both passengers and airline operators on the danger poses by the devices. A statement by the spokesperson of the agency, Samuel Adurogboye reads: “Consequent upon recent incidents and concerns raised by Samsung about its Galaxy Note 7 devices, the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has directed passengers not to turn on or charge these devices on board aircraft”.

Driving deeper the precautions, Adurogboye said, “These phones must not be stowed away in any checked-in baggage ”.

“All Airlines are hereby advised to emphasise the prohibition of this devices on board during passenger briefings by the Cabin Crew”.

“All those responsible for searching or screening checked-in baggage are expected to intensify the procedures to identify possible checked-in Samsung Galaxy Note 7”.

According to Adurogboye, “Investigation has traced these problems to charging and the company is limiting battery charging on Galaxy Note 7 devices to prevent inferno”.

“A letter has been sent to all the Airlines and all other stakeholders for strict compliance. The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) therefore calls on all passengers and airline operators to ensure total adherence to this directive as safety and security of air transportation is paramount to the Authority”.

EAN Aviation reactivates FBO radio frequency

… “We’re delighted it’s fully operable once again”-EAN CEO

EAN Aviation, a Lagos-based business aviation services company has confirmed it has reactivated its FBO radio frequency. The base radio, which is located at EAN’s FBO in Lagos was badly damaged in a torrential rainstorm last winter and since then EAN have been working tirelessly to restore connectivity. EAN’s dedicated

channel frequency 129.475 MHz was re-booted on 29th August 2016 and following subsequent checks EAN Aviation clients are being advised of its fully functional status.

The restored system enables EAN to maintain continuous contact with aircraft up to 100 nautical miles from Murtala Muhammed International Airport (LOS/DNMM), and supports flight tracking as well as voice transmissions. The radio is manned 24 hours a day by EAN’s licensed dispatchers who provide aircraft departing from, and arriving into, the EAN Aviation FBO with current, local information about the flying environment. Special requests can also be made for ground handling, fuel supply, specific equipment needs, maintenance and other services directly to the dispatchers. EAN can also convey instructions on runway allocation, which is particularly important for international business aviation flights that need to land on the nominated Runway 18R for appropriate customs clearance.

“For clients making their first flight into Lagos it’s a real bonus to be able to communicate directly with our team. It gives them peace of mind knowing that there is someone on the ground monitoring their flight and able to answer their queries immediately. It also means that we can action any specific last minute requests and be fully prepared for the aircraft’s touch down,” said Segun Demuren, CEO of EAN Aviation. “The restoration of the EAN Aviation frequency showcases our ongoing commitment to maintaining international service levels. It’s a very valuable system in terms of safety and security and we’re delighted it’s fully operable once again".