Nigerian Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo has warned that the country could retaliate against British Airways (BA, London Heathrow) if its request for traffic rights to Heathrow is denied, the New Telegraph newspaper reported.
The government has asked the United Kingdom to allow Nigerian airlines, particularly Air Peace (P4, Lagos), to operate to the British hub, emphasising this request aligned with the bilateral air services agreement between the countries, he said. Should the UK not comply, Nigeria may relegate BA to less prominent Nigerian airports like Ilorin or Kano, he told the annual conference of the League of Airport and Aviation Correspondents in Lagos on July 26.
"We have already written to the United Kingdom to give Nigerian carriers, especially Air Peace, Heathrow Airport, which is a tier one airport, just as we have British Airways, using our Lagos airport," he was quoted as saying by The Whistler. "We may as well give BA Ilorin to operate to. When we asked for Heathrow Airport, you’re telling us to go to a slot committee. Who does that? Air Peace, I can tell you, is on its way to Heathrow away from Gatwick."
Air Peace launched operations between Lagos and London Gatwick on March 31. The Nigerian carrier initially sought traffic rights to London Heathrow but did not receive them due to slot constraints. CEO Allen Onyema argued that under the bilateral air service agreement between Nigeria and the UK, Nigerian airlines should have access to the same primary airports that British carriers use in Nigeria, specifically Abuja and Lagos. Air Peace operates to Gatwick 6x weekly with a B777 until July 30, reducing its frequencies to 4x weekly thereafter, according to the ch-aviation schedules module.
The government is keen to support local carriers and ensure they have the capacity to reciprocate international agreements, Keyamo said. He also claimed that high Nigerian airline failure rates are linked to their constrained networks resulting from what he termed "unbalanced agreements" with foreign airlines.
