Domestic airlines under the auspices of Airline Operators of Nigeria on Monday, urged that the Federal Government grant AON the necessary permit for the importation and distribution of aviation fuel, colloquially known as JetA1.
According to The Punch, AON also requested that the government set up a special support line so that local airlines may obtain foreign currency from the Central Bank of Nigeria and fulfill their responsibilities to passengers.
They called while paying the minister of aviation, Festus Keyamo, a courtesy visit at his office in Abuja.
The mission of the visit, according to AON President Abdulmunaf Yunusa, was to inform the minister about the difficulties facing the industry and suggest solutions, as well as to congratulate him on his recent nomination to the position.
CEO of Top Brass Aviation, Capt Roland Iyayi, stated in a presentation given by the organization to the minister that it was necessary to guarantee the industry had an appropriate supply of aviation fuel.
“There is an urgent need to facilitate the liberalization, procurement, and distribution of JetA1 across the country and allow AON to obtain the necessary license for product importation and distribution,” he said. “There is also an urgent need to review all industry taxes, fees, and charges to determine their applicability in line with the cost recovery model.”
He emphasized that AON had been denied that privilege for a very long time and said that airline operators were the last consumers who should be allowed to enter the market to source and distribute aviation fuel.
Iyayi, who gave the group’s presentation, also informed Keyamo that the operators’ struggle with forex had grown significantly.
“We demand that the Federal Government set up and make available a dedicated support line for domestic airline operators to have unrestricted access to foreign exchange through the Central Bank of Nigeria at the official I & E window in support of domestic and international transactions,” he said.
In response, Keyamo acknowledged that the problem with foreign exchange had persisted but assured his guests that “the ministry will liaise with the CBN to see how operators can get forex at a single-digit interest rate of 1.5 to two percent as requested.”
The success of the aviation business, he emphasized, depended on operators continually ensuring the safety of their airlines.
