The board of a Lagos based aerospace logistics and flight training agency, PPK Aviation International, has urged the new federal minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, SAN, to hit the ground running by addressing the rising cost of Domestic and international air fares in Nigeria.
The agency in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos, and signed by its Chairman, Dr Fred Latimore Oghenesivbe Esq, congratulated Minister Keyamo, and expressed absolute confidence in his capacity as legal icon and technocrat to deliver on his new roles as the head of the nation’s aviation and aerospace development ministry, adding that the huge cost of air fares has impacted negatively on tourism and business travels.
PPK Aviation International, a subsidiary of Aeroflight Ltd, also appealed to the Aviation Minister to do anything and everything within his powers and office, to encourage the federal government to resolve all pending and long overdue issues relating to repartriation of foreign airlines earnings and/or profits, and immediately work out modalities for the downward review of both domestic and international air travel fares, so as to boost growth of the industry in the country.
“The former Minister of Aviation failed woefully in the discharge of the ministry’s assigned responsibilities, and also launched a nonexistent Air Nigeria.
“The ministry under the past administration could not ensure that foreign airlines take home their legitimate earnings, resulting in deliberate increase in international air fares, worsened by free fall of the Naira.
“We hope and believe that the new Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Chief Festus Keyamo, SAN, will do the needful to restore the Ministry’s dwindling public image by encouraging the federal government to allow foreign airlines repartiate their funds in compliance with subsisting Bilateral Air Service Agreement, BASA) and full compliance with IATA prescribed rules, and negotiate reduction of international air fares.
“And if something positive is not done urgently to reduce soaring air fares, local airlines providing domestic flight services will be forced out of business, a development that would impact negatively on the nation’s economy, loss of jobs in the aviation industry in Nigeria.
“While congratulating Keyamo as the new federal minister for Aviation and Aerospace Development, we urge him to hit the ground running to quickly revive the dwindling air transportation sector of our nation’s economy,” the agency added.
