By Chinelo Obogo
Immediate past president of Aviation Round Table (ART), Dr. Gabriel Olowo, has warned domestic airlines that want to commence international operations to avoid what he described as ‘redline routes.’
During an interview, he granted at the 27th annual conference of the League of Airport and Aviation Correspondents (LAAC) held in Lagos recently, he said Nigerian airlines have a history of failure because many of them never learn from the mistakes of those that came before them.
He said many of them go bankrupt in less than 10 years and that what many of them have in common is that they ply red routes that are not viable.
“The Nigerian airlines should learn from the mistakes of the past. Go and take a case study of Bellview, ADC, Okada and many others. Look at how and why they failed. If the government was responsible for the problem, we must think, how do we handle the government?
“The government has always been the problem. They tell you, you can’t fly the flag. Air Peace has been flying the flag to Ghana, Liberia, and China now. And I am sure if you look at those routes, for them not to be in red is questionable.
“Allen Onyema kept saying it and nobody is attending to him, until he rides into crisis, then AMCON will come, like they did to Arik and to Aero. That is not the way forward.”
Reacting to the theme of the conference; Aviation Industry: Changing Times, Changing Strategies, he said time is transient but the aviation sector does not require any new strategies.
He explained that the industry is replete with people that have knowledge of their profession but there is a problem with finding solutions for the challenges facing the industry. He said that there is hope for the industry to grow if the government stops playing politics with ministerial appointments.
“The time will continue to change, but what strategy are you changing? What knowledge are we lacking in any industry in this country? None! For those of us who are privileged to take medicals outside Nigeria, when we get in there, we meet Nigerian doctors; we meet Indian doctors all over the world.
“In the United States, there are more Nigerian doctors than any other. Are you now saying that those Nigerian doctors can’t practice in Nigeria? It is that we are not part of solution makers, we are always identifying problems. When you meet the minister now, he will be telling you about the problems. And he is the solution.
“The MD of FAAN is talking to you about the problems, but he is the solution. He knows that when a domestic passenger comes down, he cannot connect internationally. Doesn’t he know? He is supposed to be the solution. So what strategy are you changing? There are cobwebs in your room, you can see it, but you leave it there.
“There is plenty of hope; resources are plenty here in Nigeria. You always see that players in the industry are saying something differently from politicians or political appointees. Check the CV of all the past aviation ministers, who is a thorough industry person?” he said.