FG confirms loss of interest in Nigeria Air project, calls for investors

• The erstwhile Minister for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, repeatedly promised that Nigeria would person a nationalist carrier, and yet launched Nigeria Air successful May 2023
• The contentious Nigeria Air task generated tons of controversies and questions, yet starring to the suspension of the task astatine the lawsuit of the Nigerian lawmakers
• Federal Minister of Aviation, Festus Keyamo, has present confirmed the presumption of Nigeria Air and the plans ahead

Legit.ng writer Ruth Okwumbu-Imafidon has implicit a decennary of acquisition successful business reporting crossed integer and mainstream media.

Almost 2 years aft the indefinite suspension of the Nigeria Air project, the national authorities has yet spoken connected the adjacent steps for the nationalist carrier.

Federal Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has stated emphatically that the authorities volition not beryllium investing immoderate further funds into the arguable nationalist bearer project, Nigeria Air.

Recall that 3 days earlier the expiration of erstwhile President Muhammadu Buhari's word successful office, the Ministry of Aviation launched Nigeria Air, nether the supervision of erstwhile Minister Hadi Sirika, successful 2023.

The Minister explained that the authorities volition beryllium focused connected processing policies that engender maturation successful the aviation sector. Photo credit: Festus Keyamo
Source: Facebook

This came aft respective failed promises to motorboat a nationalist bearer for Nigeria, and the rushed execution near manufacture stakeholders with much questions than answers.

The ownership exemplary of the Nigeria Air project, which granted Ethiopian Airlines a 49% equity participation, raised concerns among stakeholders countrywide.

FG suspends Nigeria Air project

On May 27, 2024, astatine the ministerial briefing to commemorate President Bola Tinubu’s archetypal twelvemonth successful office, Mr. Keyamo announced that the Nigeria Air task had been suspended indefinitely.

He justified this determination by explaining however the ownership operation of the suspended hose gave excessively overmuch power of Nigeria’s aviation assemblage to a overseas company, endangering the enlargement of determination companies.

The House of Representatives Committee connected Aviation besides backed the suspension, describing the hasty motorboat of a nationalist bearer arsenic a fraud.

Sirika and respective others are inactive being investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) implicit alleged N19.4 cardinal declaration fraud and maltreatment of office.

During the ensuing controversies, the CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, Mr Mesfin Tasew, revealed that the hose initially considered withdrawing from the project, but the authorities insisted connected its participation.

The latest update from the curate confirms that determination are nary plans to reinvest successful the project.

FG calls for concern proposals from nationalist and backstage entities

In a connection connected his X grip connected Sunday, May 25, 2025, Keyamo reacted to a work successful the Vanguard paper from the motorboat of the publication “100 Years of Civil Aviation successful Nigeria: History, Issues and Prospects,” authored by Wole Shadare.

His tweet read;

“The close communicative should beryllium that the FG volition not put a dime successful establishing a National Carrier but is ever unfastened to proposals from backstage oregon nationalist entities, some successful and retired of the country, that genuinely payment Nigeria and Nigerians successful establishing a National Carrier.”

He added that astatine the moment, the authorities is focused connected processing policies that would guarantee the maturation of section hose operators successful the state to vie with their overseas counterparts.

The Nigeria Air task is present disconnected the array for the national government. Photo credit: State House
Source: UGC

He observed that policies specified arsenic ensuring that the airlines patronise section caterers and grooming postulation operators helped plug gross leakages and amended the Nigerian economy.

Direct flights resume to Warri, different cities

In related news, Nigeria’s longest-serving home hose has expanded nonstop formation operations to much cities nationwide.

Legit.ng reported that Overland Airways released their updated flight schedules, showing that nonstop flights are present disposable from Lagos and Abuja to Warri, Minna, and Jalingo.

In the archetypal instance, the hose volition run flights to these cities for 3 days each week, but determination are plans to standard it up later.

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Source: Legit.ng