'Nigeria is the harshest operating environment for any airline': Air Peace CEO

Air Peace chairman and CEO Allen Onyema said: "Nigeria is the harshest operating environment for any airline, especially the domestic airlines" (Punch, 17-Sep-2017). He stated: "There are so many challenges including multiple taxation, high cost of acquiring aviation fuel, high cost of procuring spare parts and bringing them into the country, and our Customs officers not understanding what it means to support airlines" and added: "Besides these, we have poor airport infrastructure, poor understanding from the passengers, and the poor governance structure of some of the airlines could also be a challenge. Another major problem is multiple designations being given to foreign airlines in Nigeria, while Nigerian airlines are not being encouraged at all". Mr Onyema also commented: "There is a dearth of qualified aviation personnel in Nigeria, especially in aviation engineering". He concluded: "The major problem with aviation in this country is government policies. Majority of the policies do not support the growth of the industry; that is the major problem".