Nigerian Aviation: Airlines to watch in 2013

Med-view is determined to capture substantial part of the market in the coming year

In an industry that is plagued with harsh business environment and and competition. There will always be carriers who will act as catalyst for upheavals. This blog is going to look at six airlines that will be the talk of the aviation industry in Nigeria. Some of them will pose a new threat to their competitors in capturing a share of the market, some others are reaching a point where either way is possible and others are under the threat of going out of business as a result of financial distress or political interests. Wherever they fall on the spectrum, the fact still remains that they will be the talk of the Nigerian airline industry in the coming year.

 Dana Air: Still smarting from a plane crash involving one of its aircraft and after having its operating license restored back to it by the Federal Government despite public outcry, The airline is struggling to go back into service. The airline was supposed to go back into business this December but unfortunately, its hope of coming back was dashed when the National Assembly recommended that its license be revoked. It has began training of its staff when it suddenly sent them on a compulsory leave. Next year will determine whether the airline will succeed in coming back into business as its quest to comeback has being blocked by political interest. Will Dana be able to beat political interest and comeback to business? If yes, Will they be able to regain public confidence and remain in business? The trend in the airline industry is that airlines involved in plane crashes never return the same way they are. Bellview and EAS are typical examples. (Sosoliso and ADC had their operations suspended by the Federal government as a result of the crash). If Dana Air is finally stopped from operating, 2000 workers will be sent to the already saturated labour market. About 800 workers lost their jobs when Air Nigeria went out of business and in 2010 800 people also lost their jobs when Afrijet also went out of business. The figures may increase in the coming months in 2013 if Dana is finally stop from operating. 2013 is a deciding year that will either make or mar the airline.

First Nation: After suspending its flight operations in July due to aircraft maintenance as well as non availability of aircraft. The airline is poised to resume operations in the coming year. The airline has sent an Airbus A319 to Dublin for painting in its colors. 2013 will be a deciding year for the airline as it plans to resume operations.

Med-view Airlines: The latest entrant to the airline business. Med-view is known as a charter carrier. It entered into the domestic airline business on November 2012 in the wake of the high demand air travel. The coming year will be a year when the airline will begin to establish it self as a domestic carrier. It will also be a decisive year on whether it would be able to regain the market share in the airline business. According to its CEO, Munir Bankole, The airline has airlifted 30,000 passengers between November and December. It will not be a surprise if the airline expands to other domestic routes in the coming year. However with the harsh business climate and inconsistent policies, will the airline overcome the challenges bedeviling the other airlines?

Chanchangi: The coming year will be a deciding factor for the airline. For Chanchangi, it has not being easy. The airline has being going in and out of business. Remember the good old days when the  airline was at time the largest airline in Nigeria with a fleet of 12 airplanes how ever things went for the worst it ran to financial troubles. The airline's fleet dropped from 12 to five and now it has only one aircraft - a Boeing 737-300. The airline has announced plans to start operations once more with only one aircraft. The coming year will determine whether the airline will be successful with a single aircraft fleet or not. It will be a deciding factor on whether or not the airline will remain in business.

Aero Contractors: One of Nigeria's dominant airlines. It controls the market share in the domestic and regional market alongside with Arik. The coming year will determine the future direction of the carrier as it ran into leadership crises after its former Managing Director, Capt Akin George resigned as the CEO after its take over by Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria due to massive debt owed various agencies. It is up to Obaro Ibru, the new Managing Director to position the carrier back to a sustainable business. The airline must also brace up for competition from Fastjet. Aero must prepare it self for an anticipated development of air transport in Africa.

Arik Air: West Africa's largest airline and the fastest growing carrier in Africa. The airline is plagued by challenges to its operations. Recently, the airline suspended domestic operations due to strikes by the labour unions in the airline industry over its failure to pay up the debts it owed the various aviation regulatory agencies it rendered. In the coming year it is hopeful that the carrier will survive the challenges as the management tries to reposition the airline. In other to be the leader of the airline business in West Africa, Arik must reposition itself to compete with Fastjet a new budget carrier.