Revealed: How Buhari’s Govt Asked Ethiopian Airlines To Paint Aircraft for Nigeria Air Launch
- The immediate past administration has been exposed for its schemes in floating the operation of Nigerian Air
- There were earlier speculations that the aircraft that was used for the unveiling of Nigerian Air belongs to Ethiopian Airlines
- Confirming the authenticity of these speculations, the CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, Mr Mesfin Tasew, said the assertions were correct
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Adis Ababa, Ethiopia - The CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, Mr Mesfin Tasew, has finally reacted to the airline's involvement in creating Nigeria Air.
He revealed that the airline initially considered withdrawing from the project, but the government insisted on its participation.
Source: Facebook
As reported by Daily Trust, his statement marks the first time Ethiopian Airlines' leadership has addressed the controversy surrounding Nigeria Air, which was a contentious issue during the previous administration.
It would be recalled that Nigeria's former Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, had introduced Nigeria Air on May 27, but it faced obstacles when it was revealed that an Ethiopian Airlines plane was used for a demonstration flight, contrary to the established procedures for establishing a new airline.
Airline operators sue FG
It was later reported that the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) filed a lawsuit against the Federal Government, disputing the selection of Ethiopian Airlines as the preferred partner for the project.
During discussions with Nigerian journalists in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian Airlines boss disclosed that there were no initial plans to establish an airline in Nigeria.
He said the federal government invited them to collaborate on creating a national carrier, Nigeria Air.
Furthermore, the federal government requested that the Nigeria Air logo be painted on Ethiopian Airlines aircraft for inspection, a request to which the airline agreed.
He said:
“At one point, that leadership of Nigeria Air, which doesn’t include Ethiopian Airlines, asked us to bring aircraft painted with Nigerian logo to facilitate the progress of the Air Operators’ Certificate.
"So, we agreed with that, we took out one of our aircraft, we painted it with Nigerian logo, we flew it, it was for demonstration by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) for their inspection. So, after two days, we brought back the aircraft, repainted it with Ethiopian logo and it is flying.
So, while we were here, waiting for the decision of the court, now there was a change of government that took place.”
Tasew underscored that Nigeria Air was established before Ethiopian Airlines was invited to join the partnership.
Air Peace, Arik, others to pay compensation for delayed, cancelled flights, says FG
In another report, the Nigerian Government has told airline operators that they will start paying compensation for delayed or cancelled flights.
This development was confirmed by the Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, during the visit to airline operators to his office.
The operators asked the Nigerian Government to grant them licenses to import aviation fuel.
Source: Legit.ng
