Nigeria's ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) party has proposed consolidating the country's debt-ridden airlines into a single national carrier which would then partner a reputable international airline.
In their proposal put to recently elected president Muhammadu Buhari, the APC said the new carrier would result in "increased revenue, reduce capital flight, expand the local aviation industry and create more employment opportunities due to the scale created".
A similar proposal was put forward under the previous Goodluck Jonathan administration with Aero Contractors (N2, Lagos) and the remains of Air Nigeria (Lagos) being used as the foundation for a new national carrier - Nigerian Eagle (2013) (Lagos). Government acquired stakes in the airlines through the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) which took over each carrier's debts said to amount to NGN67billion (USD500million).
However, according to former Minister of Aviation Osita Chidoka, the project collapsed after government failed to reach an agreement with AeroContractors' 40% shareholder, the Ibru family, over funding and equity holdings in Nigerian Eagle.
Abuja's dalliance in selecting a strategic partner also helped torpedo the project despite reports that it had sounded out Ethiopian Airlines (ET, Addis Ababa International), South African Airways (SA, Johannesburg O.R. Tambo), Lufthansa (LH, Frankfurt International), and Qatar Airways (QR, Doha Hamad International) over their possible partnership in the airline.
