Category: Aviation

Nigerians that relocated into the country at about 1:43pm have been abandoned at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, alleging that they are stranded. According to one of the passengers that spoke exclusively to Top News Magazines, she accused the officials of the Nigerian airport of neglect, and the disease control unit NCDC, a failure as all passengers were scattered around the tarmac with no one to attend to them. “We came in with a British Airways flight at exactly 1:43 pm and till now 4:48pm(over 3hours), we are…

Read More

Airline employers have begin massive cut of salaries amid the COVID-19 pandemic that has led to the grounding of over 76 domestic planes. Arik Air on Wednesday slashed the April salaries of its workers by 80 per cent and sent over 90 per cent of its over 1,500 employees on  compulsory leave without pay. Already, Azman Air and Max Air had sent over 1,000 workers on compulsory leave without pay, citing the ravaging effect of the COVID-19 on business. The eight domestic airlines and allied companies account for over 8,000…

Read More

The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) on Tuesday announced that it has seized a whooping sum of $8.6 million (equivalent of N2.9 billion) cash at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos. The cash was loaded in six Bagco bags discovered in a bus operated by the Nigerian Aviation Handling Company (NAHCO), apparently in the process of being smuggled out of the country. The driver of the bus, Chimezie Okonkwo, was arrested and taken into custody with the intercepted consignment. NAHCO, a ground handling service provider, has dissociated self from…

Read More

Boeing has unveiled the first fully assembled Boeing 777X – the world’s longest passenger jetliner. The launch, earlier scheduled for last Wednesday, was delayed due to the Ethiopian Airlines’ B737Max plane that crashed in Ethiopia, killing all 157 souls onboard. In the aftermath of the disaster, the second in five months, airlines in many parts of the world have grounded the B737Max 8 and 9 fleet, putting Boeing in crisis. But as a mark of respect for those who died in the 737 Max 8 crash, it was instead unveiled…

Read More

The air crash involving Ethiopian Airlines’ Boeing737MAX plane that had barely taken off from the Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa yesterday, has left 157 people dead. Two Nigerians, Ambassador Abiodun Bashua, and Prof. Pius Adesanmi, were among the157 persons who died in the crash. Bashua was United Nations and African Union Deputy Joint Special Representative in Darfur, Sudan. Adesanmi, a writer, graduate of University of Ilorin as well as a literary critic and professor with Carlton University in Canada, was believed to be heading for the African Union Economic,…

Read More

Federal Government has placed indefinite suspension on the takeoff of the proposed national carrier scheduled for December 24. Though the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, who announced the decision yesterday did not give reasons, it was learnt that the development was not unconnected with investors’ apathy, ownership structure and funding issues. The government had in July unveiled the name and logo of the proposed national carrier, Nigeria Air, at the Farnborough International Public Airshow in London, ahead of takeoff in December 24. As contained in the Outline Business…

Read More

Hadi Sirika, the Minister of State for Aviation, has described the nation’s air transport industry as horrible. The minister expressed his disenchantment while fielding questions from newsmen on the sidelines of the ICAO-AFI Regional Workshop on Improvement of A fundamental Safety Oversight System in the Area of Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation with RASG-AFI States in Abuja. He reiterated that the Federal Government was floating a new national carrier, Nigerian Air, because the industry, currently driven by the private sector, had been unable to provide excellent air transport services for…

Read More

The name of the new national carrier, Nigeria Air, has been unveiled by the Federal Government. The airline, set for take-off on December 24, is largely private investors-owned, with the government owning only five per cent equity. Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, at the unveiling of the name and logo at the ongoing Farnborough Airshow in London yesterday, said the airline would restore the country’s place in global aviation, covering no fewer than 81 local, regional and international routes. Sirika, in the presence of prospective investors, airline manufacturers…

Read More

Alhaji Ahmadu Chanchangi, the Chairman of Chanchangi Airlines, is dead. The Taraba State-born Kaduna-based billionaire died along Kaduna-Abuja Road, on his way to a hospital in Abuja, yesterday morning. Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari has extended his condolences to the Chanchangi family, describing the aviation icon as a business mogul and one of Nigeria’s outstanding philanthropists. A family source said: “He died along the road, while we were rushing him to a hospital in Abuja, after a protracted illness. “He will be buried by 2p.m. today (yesterday), according to Islamic rites at…

Read More