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Onyema confers with National Productivity Order of Merit Award

Onyema receives National Productivity Order of Merit award

By Lawani Mikairu

The Chairman of Air Peace, Barrister Allen Onyema, has been conferred with a National Productivity Order of Merit (NPOM) award by President Muhammadu Buhari .

The conferment took place today at the 19th National Productivity Day ceremony in Abuja.The award, within the Employers of Labour category, is in recognition of “Onyema’s giant strides in entrepreneurship, massive job creation and overall economic achievements”.

Other distinguished personalities in the same category are Mike Adenuga, Jim Ovia, Abdul Samad Rabiu and Chinedum Okereke.
Receiving the award, the aviation cognoscente thanked President Buhari and the Ministry of Labour headed by Senator Chris Ngige and reiterated his commitment to the Nigerian project.

He said he would continue to use his entrepreneurship to impact Nigera’s economy and carry out more social impact initiatives, adding that “Nigeria is our country and we all must do all we can to take her to greater heights’.

Recall while speaking to journalists in Abuja at an event to herald the NPOM Award ceremony, Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige, said the conferment of National Productivity Order of Merit Award was a positive step by government to ” institutionalise productivity consciousness and excellence in service among workers and organisations in Nigeria towards redirecting their efforts to the growth and development of our economy”.

Ngige also said the other objectives of the Award are to ” reward the most productive workers and organisations in both public and private sectors for diligence, high performance, high productivity and research achievements.

” To also encourage and foster the spirit of healthy competition amongst workers, firms and companies in Nigeria, and encourage the spirit of self-reliance.”

Patoma Admin by — May 12, 2022 in Aviation 0
Domestic airlines call off action

By Favour Nnabugwu
Domestic airline operators , under the aegis of Airline Operators of Nigeria, AON, have called off their planned suspension of flights which was billed to commence today, Monday.
A statement signed by the President of AON, Alhaji Abdulmunaf Yunusa Sarina and endorsed by other members said they have listened to the appeal by stakeholders and the federal government for them not to withdraw their services.
The statement read: ” The Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) wishes to inform the general public that further to numerous calls from the highest echelons in government with promises to urgently intervene in the crises being faced by airlines due to the astronomic and continuously rising cost of JetA1, that the AON has acceded to requests to withdraw the action for the time being while we allow for a fresh round of dialogue with government in the hope of reaching an amicable solution.”
“We have also reached this decision with the highest consideration for our esteemed customers who have been faced with uncertainty over the last few days and to enable them to have access to travel to their various destinations for the time being during the period of discussions with relevant authorities.”
“In view of the above and in the interest of national economy and security considerations, AON hereby wishes to notify the general public that the earlier announced shutdown of operations on May 9, 2022 is hereby suspended in good fate pending the outcome of hopefully fruitful engagement with government,” the AON President said.
Patoma Admin by — May 8, 2022 in Aviation 0
Domestic airlines insist on suspension of flight from tomorrow

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

All effort made to persuade airlines from shutting down may have fell into deaf ears as domestic airlines operators under the aegis of Airline Operators of Nigeria, AON, have insisted on going ahead with the suspension of flight operations with effect from tomorrow, Monday 9th, May.

A statement signed yesterday by the President of AON, Alhaji Abdulmunaf Yunusa Sarina and endorsed by other members, said there is no going back on their decision.

The statement read : ” In the light of frantic developments within the last twenty four hours since informing the general public of our decision to suspend operations in response to the astronomic and continuously rising cost of JetA1, the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) would like to state unequivocally that we stand firmly by our decision. ”

“Airline operators are patriotic citizens and we are doing all we can to protect the flying public contrary to what some subjective schools of thought might suggest. This is a collective sacrifice for the common interest of our nation”.

“AON however regrets the unfortunate position taken by one of our members, Ibom Air, not to stand by the collective decision. While they may have their reasons for doing what they did, it is pertinent to note that they equally accepted in their statement that the JetA1 situation poses an “existential threat to the air transport industry in Nigeria” and that “the out-of-control situation is simply unsustainable.”

“May we use this medium to clearly state that; “Airlines are not on strike. We are private investors who do not run our airlines with public funds to be able to continue to pay upfront in cash at N700 per litre for JetA1 which has increased our cost on daily basis to about 95%. This is totally unsustainable. And its consequences, if allowed to stay, will be borne by the passengers; which is what we are trying to prevent. ”

” To this end therefore, we remain resolute in our resolve to find a lasting solution to this crucial problem of national emergency and once again use this medium to appeal to the conscience of our esteemed passengers for their understanding”, The AON President added.

Patoma Admin by — May 8, 2022 in Aviation 0
Domestic airlines to shut down operations with effect from Monday … say aviation fuel now N700 per litre

By Favour Nnabugwu
 
Domestic  airlines operators has announced that will shut down operations from Monday, May 9, 2022 due to the high cost of aviation fuel which has hit N700 per litre.
A statement issued and signed by all the airline operators today advised the traveling public who intend to fly to make alternative arrangements to avoid being stranded at the country’s airports.
The statement read : ” It is with a great sense of responsibility and patriotism that the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON)  have carried on deploying and subsidizing their services to our highly esteemed Nigerian flying public in the last four months despite the steady and astronomical hike in the price of JetA1 and other operating costs.”
“Overtime, aviation fuel price (JetA1) has risen from N190 per litre to N700 currently. No airline in the world can absorb this kind of sudden shock from such an astronomical rise over a short period. While aviation fuel worldwide is said to cost about 40% of an airline’s operating cost globally, the present hike has shut up Nigeria’s operating cost to about 95%. “.
” In the face of this, airlines have engaged the Federal Government, the National Assembly, NNPC and Oil Marketers with the view to bringing the cost of JetA1 down which has currently made the unit cost per seat for a one hour flight in Nigeria today to an average of N120,000″.
“The latter cannot be fully passed to passengers who are already experiencing a lot of difficulties.”
“While AON appreciates the efforts of the current government under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari to ensure air transport in Nigeria grows, unfortunately, the cost of aviation fuel has continued to rise unabated thereby creating huge pressure on the sustainability of operations and financial viability of the airlines. This is unsustainable and
the airlines can no longer absorb the pressure.”
“To this end therefore, the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) hereby wishes to regrettably inform the general public that member airlines will discontinue operations nationwide with effect from Monday May 9, 2022 until further notice.”
“AON uses this medium to humbly state that we regret any inconveniences this very difficult decision might cause and
appeal to travelers to kindly reconsider their travel itinerary and make alternative arrangements”, Alhaji  Abdulmunaf Yunusa Sarina, President, AON advised.
Patoma Admin by — May 6, 2022 in Aviation 0
Monsoon preparation: Mumbai Airport to close for 6 hours on May 10

By admin

 

One of India’s busiest airports, Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA), will be non-operational for six hours on May 10th.

The airport will be closed for 6 hours as the monsoon season approaching, the airport’s runways need to be prepped for the heavy rainfall that Mumbai witnesses every year.

Continuing with its yearly practice of pre-monsoon repairs and maintenance, Mumbai airport will close its runways from 11:00 to 17:00 on May 10th. CSMIA has posted an official tweet that says that “all operations will resume as usual post 17:00 hrs on the same day.”

Every year ahead of monsoon, Mumbai airport preps its runways for the heavy rains it experiences, particularly from July onwards. CSMIA spokesperson has advised passengers scheduled to fly in and out of Mumbai that day to check with their respective airlines about the change in schedule.

The airport has issued a Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) to all stakeholders in order to manage flights and reduce passengers’ inconvenience.

The monsoon season can be tough on Mumbai, with the city often coming to a standstill following heavy downpours and the resulting waterlogging. In the past, the city has even had to shut rail and air services as it gets flooded and clogged with water.

Mumbai airport, too, faces the brunt of severe rains, particularly when it comes to its runways. In 2010, the airport had to close its runway after its surface was damaged due to heavy rains.

Landing in Mumbai during the monsoons can also be challenging at times for pilots. In 2019, A SpiceJet 737 coming from Jaipur overshot the runway while landing amid heavy rain. The incident led to the shutdown of the main runway of the Mumbai airport, with flights canceled or diverted to the nearby airports. The aircraft was stuck at the end of the runway for days before it could be pulled out.

Sometimes, just getting to the airport in Mumbai can be a challenge when it rains incessantly. In 2019, passengers were stranded at Mumbai airport for hours, with waterlogging on roads and the subsequent traffic jams making it difficult for ground support staff, cabin crew, and pilots to reach the airport on time.

In the past, the airport has also been flooded when the nearby Mithi River overflowed during heavy rains. In 2021, floodgates were installed at the junction where the river flows into the airport to stop the ingress of water.

This year, monsoon prep is particularly important for Mumbai as domestic traffic picks back up. Mumbai airport was the worst affected among all major Indian airports in 2020-21. While passenger numbers are still below pre-COVID days, the airport also registered the highest growth in passenger numbers in 2021-22.

CSMIA has witnessed steady growth in air traffic and passenger footfall ever since India opened its borders to scheduled international flights in March. In the last month alone, the airport saw more than 600,000 passengers.

Clearly, it needs a fully functional runway in the months ahead, as passengers increasingly take to the skies in India.

Patoma Admin by — May 3, 2022 in Aviation 0
Workers Day: FG yet to address labour issues in Airport concession- Union

Workers Day : Union says FG yet to address labour issues in Airport concession
National Union of Air Transport Employee,  NUATE, yesterday said that the federal government is yet to address all the labour issues raised by aviation workers unions in the ongoing concession of the nation’s four international airports.
Speaking on the the occasion to mark this year’s workers day, the President of NUATE, Comrade Ben K. Nnabue said the union will confront the federal government this week on the issues raised and may likely go on strike if not addressed.
Nnabue said : “Our union is unsatisfied with ongoing discussions around the big question of airports concession. We are unclear as to government’s actual response the demands of aviation unions on labour issues and many lapses in the concession programme”.
” In the coming weeks, important decisions will be made to chart a clear path towards ameliorating already stated demands of workers.”.
Also speaking on the minimum wage, the NUATE President said , ” The twin big issues of Minimum Wage Consequential Adjustment and Conditions of Service for the aviation Agencies are currently raging. We stand firmly by the decision of workers not to accept continuing shifting of the goal post by government agencies on these issues. Therefore, this week has been set out for major decisions and subsequent decisive actions that will bring these issues to a foreclosure.”
He also said that, “in like manner, we express our frustration at the dilly-dallying attitude of the BPE in attending to the negotiated redundancy benefits of ex-staff of SAHCO, a matter pending since 2009. Let me assure the affected ex-workers that the unions have gone so far and cannot retreat on the matter at this point. We are at the verge of final solution, failing which we shall take decisive actions towards seeking justice for the victims.”
On the current state of the aviation industry, he expressed frustration that “before we could feel the relief from the waning notorious Corona virus, our industry was greeted with the double punch of the Putin war on Ukraine and skyrocketing aviation fuel price. Against the background of negative travelers’ reaction to recent air fare increases, these multiple adversities have been exceedingly crippling, particularly for airlines. This has delayed the exit of our industry from recession.”
“As expected, your union has been seriously challenged by the current pall surrounding the aviation industry. Notwithstanding, however, your Union has been proving equal to the task, even making notable strides to the bargain,” he added.
Patoma Admin by — May 1, 2022 in Aviation 0
Over 300,000 applied for Emirates Cabin Crew

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

Over 300,000 have applied for Emirates Cabin Crew as the Airline expects to return to 100 percent of operations and network capacity in 2023.

There’s such a satisfying feeling of hearing airlines carrying out massive recruitment drives like this one, giving a fuller sense of hope knowing that the climbing trend in hiring back airline staff is significantly positive news for the industry

With an expectation to return to 100 percent of operations and network capacity by next year, Emirates has launched an enormous recruitment drive to strengthen its cabin crew workforce as it is calling for applicants with:

“A personality that shines, the ability to adapt to any situation and make people feel at ease.”

This is the second post-pandemic recruitment drive that the Dubai-based carrier has launched, with the first round launched back in August. The goal was to hire 3,000 cabin crew and 500 airport service staff back then.

The number has since doubled during this recruitment drive, as Emirates is looking for many more crew members this month, as well as pilots, engineering specialists, and ground staff, as confirmed by the airline:

“As we focus on recovery and further ramp up our operations, we are accelerating our recruitment drive with the objective to hire roughly 6,000 cabin crew positions during this financial year, from April 2022 to March 2023.”

Interested applicants would have to be willing to be based in Dubai and meet the UAE’s employment visa requirements. Additionally, more than a year’s experience in hospitality and customer service and being a high-school graduate is also a requirement of Emirates.
Emirates has already had a massive pool of candidates applying to strengthen its workforce. In all, the airline has received more than 300,000 applications for the cabin crew jobs alone.

What’s more, the airline is confident of even more applications pouring in for other positions, having mentioned:

“Since we launched our cabin crew recruitment drive in August 2021, we have received more than 300,000 applications from all over the world, demonstrating the tremendous level of interest in this role and in Dubai’s growing reputation as one of the best cities to live and work.”
Once selected from the candidate pool, successful applicants will go through weeks of rigorous training at Dubai’s Emirates Aviation College before their flying careers can commence.

To ensure they are exposed to various operations, they will also be assigned to medium, long-haul, and shorter turnaround flights across the Gulf carrier’s 130-destination network onboard the Airbus A380s and the Boeing 777s.

Emirates is ramping up recruitment to embrace the bounce-back of demand within the aviation industry. Currently, the airline is operating at approximately 70% of its 2019 levels, and is expecting capacity to rise past 80% by the beginning of its winter schedule in November.

Even better, the airline is foreseeing a vital return to profit in the next fiscal year as it sees signs of recovery in terms of seat factor and demand. Emirates’ Chief Operating Officer Adnan Kazim said:

Emirates is undoubtedly trending in the right direction with two recruitment drives and many applications received. There’s such a satisfying feeling of hearing airlines carrying out massive recruitment drives like this one, giving a fuller sense of hope knowing that the climbing trend in hiring back airline staff is significantly positive news for the industry

Patoma Admin by — April 28, 2022 in Aviation 0
AIB releases preliminary reports on four aircraft major incidents

By Favour Nnabugwu

 

 

Nigeria Accident Investigation Bureau, AIB-N, has released four preliminary reports on serious incidents and accident involving aircraft owned and operated by United Nigeria Airlines Limited, Max Air, Air Peace and the Nigerian Police Air Wing.

AIB General Manager, Public Affairs, Mr Tunji Oketunbi who disclosed the release of the reports said they are the Preliminary report on the Serious Incident involving the United Nigeria Airlines Embraer 145LR aircraft with nationality and registration marks 5N-BWW, which was climbing out of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, Nigeria when a serious incident occurred at about 4,000 feet on 17th November, 2021.

The second Preliminary report is on the Serious Incident involving Max Air Boeing 737-300 aircraft, which was parked at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja with nationality and registration marks 5N-DAB and was involved in an on-ground collision with Skyway Aviation Handling Co. Plc (SAHCO) lavatory service truck with fleet number 9/5 on 21st November, 2021.

The third Preliminary report is on serious incident involving a Boeing 737-300 aircraft owned and operated by Air Peace Limited with nationality and registration marks 5N-BUQ, which occurred after take-off from Sam Mbakwe Airport, Owerri, Nigeria enroute Lagos on 22nd November, 2021.

The final preliminary report released is on an accident involving a Bell 429 helicopter owned and operated by Nigeria Police Air Wing with Nationality and Registration marks 5N-MDA, which occurred at the Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa Airport, Bauchi, Nigeria on 26th January, 2022.
The reports are already on the Bureau’s website (www.aib.gov.ng).

According to Oketunbi, the “Preliminary reports are not the final reports as they only contain details of the initial facts, discussions and findings surrounding the occurrences; which include information gathered from witness statements, flight recorders, Health and Usage Monitoring System (HUMS) Data, Flight Data Monitoring (FDM) data, and preliminary inspection of the accident sites and the wreckages.”

“Therefore, investigations on these serious incidents and accident are still ongoing and final reports will be released at the conclusions of the respective investigations,” the AIB Spokesman said.

Patoma Admin by — April 26, 2022 in Aviation 0
Ethiopian Airlines’ 4-Pillar growth strategy

Ethiopian Airlines was forced to heavily adapt during the peak months of the pandemic. The flag carrier of Ethiopia took it upon itself to redeploy its aircraft to meet urgent cargo demand while conducting over 470 critical repatriation flights.

Now, recovery is underway, and the airline is once again evolving. Simple Flying recently spoke with Ethiopian Airlines USA Regional Director Samson Arega, about his airline’s growth strategy in this new era.

The refocusing on air cargo helped Ethiopian Airlines end 2021 in a profitable state thanks to a boom in freight demand. Overall, the airline handled the pandemic with its own finances without bailouts while operating close to 70% capacity as the new year arrived.

To handle the challenging conditions of the global health crisis and enter recovery in a strong position, Ethiopian developed a four-pillar growth strategy. The focus areas are:

Following the rise of the pandemic, the company capitalized on these pillars and used its agile workforce and technology to cope with the crisis. Samson highlights that the flexibility of its management has been critical in devising new strategies to come through the crisis, including the reconfiguration of passenger aircraft into cargo and redeployment of staff to its least affected business units while applying cost leadership strategies.

Keeping the momentum going
In this next chapter, these pillars will remain integral. Samson told Simple Flying the following about his airline’s recovery plans:

“Passenger business is recovering. Complete recovery is dependent on the confidence of travelers and airlines’ safety measures. For us, safety has been at the heart of our operation, and we stepped up precautionary actions to help gain passenger confidence in travel and expedite recovery. Digitization has also been a priority to bring about a contactless passenger experience from booking all the way to boarding. At the airport, customers’ experience is contactless, easy, and convenient with the newly designed terminal equipped with the latest aviation infrastructure. We digitized most airport activities.”

Samson adds that passengers can seamlessly book, check-in or change travel dates from home. Moreover, most customer flight requirements can be handled by the carrier’s app. As a result, the majority of passenger queries are addressed online with the additional help of chatbots and social media channels.

There have been significant changes already this year. Notably, long-time CEO Tewolde GebreMariam stepped down due to health issues and was quickly replaced by new CEO Mesfin Tasew Bekele in March.

Ethiopian didn’t waste time following this shift, with the carrier announcing a thrice-weekly service on an Addis Ababa-Lomé-Washington route that will begin on June 1st using Boeing 787-8 aircraft. The airline’s leadership is keen to optimize opportunities on North American routes, looking to cater to demand from growing business segments.
Ethiopian Airlines concludes that it is determined to recover in the passenger space with the effective practice of safety measures to boost customer confidence.

All in all, the airline’s ability to adapt and show resilience is due to its 75-year journey that has allowed it due evolve with the times. This factor is significant at this time when countries are starting to ease restrictions and airlines need to transition themselves to new challenges to restore business. Therefore, the carrier is working closely with other airlines, airport operators, and aviation regulatory bodies to make the most of this crucial period

Patoma Admin by — April 24, 2022 in Aviation 0
Russia resumes flights to 52 ‘friendly’ nations

By admin

 

Russian news agency TASS reported that restrictions on flights from Russia to 52 countries would be canceled from April 9. These restrictions were put in place to slow the spread of COVID and are being lifted on the advice of the operational headquarters for combatting coronavirus.

Russia Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin announced the move, which he says applies to “friendly states”,

“Starting from April 9 we are lifting restrictions set for combatting coronavirus pandemic, which applied to our regular and charter flights between Russia and a number of other countries. Now we are resuming flights with 52 countries, including Argentina, India, South Africa and other friendly states.”

Mishustin added that earlier, it was possible to fly to 15 countries without restrictions, including some states of the EAEU (the Eurasian Economic Union), Qatar, Mexico, and others.

The EAEU is an economic union of Russia and its ‘near neighbors’, formed after the demise of the Soviet Union to foster trade and development. It’s often seen as a foil to the European Union’s influence, and key member states are Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan.

The TASS statement lists all 52 states where flights can be resumed, which can be loosely grouped as being in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and South and Central America.

Some of the countries that can fly to and from Russia from April 9 include Brazil, China, Turkey, Israel, India, Pakistan, South Africa, North Korea, Seychelles and Saudi Arabia.

While part of Russia’s retaliation to economic sanctions was to close its airspace to airlines from 36 countries, international flights are already arriving and departing from Russia on a daily basis.
A quick scan of today’s flight boards at Moscow’s two airports, Sheremetyevo (SVO) and Domodedovo (DME), show carriers including Emirates Airlines, Air Arabia, Etihad Airways, SriLankan Airlines, Qatar Airways, Air China, and Air Serbia operating international flights.

Flightradar24.com data shows a popular track of flights from Dubai crossing Iran, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, and through Russia to Moscow, such as Emirates Airlines EK133 and Aeroflot SU527. This is a simple corridor from Russia to the Middle East, where connections can be made to all of those ‘friendly countries’ the Russian prime minister talks so fondly of.

While Russia is now the world’s most sanctioned country, ahead of Iran, Syria, and North Korea, it is not facing sanctions from countries in Central and South America, Africa, the Commonwealth of Independent States, and Asia, apart from Japan.

With all of those regions open to them, Russian airlines have a large and safe playing field in which to operate. Presumably, the lack of sanctions means refueling the aircraft or fixing any MRO niggles will not be an issue.

Going in the other direction, large markets like China, India, Africa, and South America will be able to connect with Russia for trade, tourism, and general travel.

Perhaps even the oligarchs will get their Gulfstreams and Globals out again and head out for some summer sun, well beyond the reach of the authorities who would confiscate their aircraft and leave them stranded.

Patoma Admin by — April 5, 2022 in Aviation 0