A bold move from Mr. Governor: ‘Over the last five months, the Deputy Governor and I have been working to put a concise plan together for the establishment of an airline, but we did not make the plan open because of the need to get adequate knowledge about the operational procedures of airlines,” Governor Sanwo-Olu remarked. “The business plan is viable, and there is no issue about financing. The conversation has gone to an advanced stage, but we need to get the proper information on operations before we go ahead to implement the plan.”’
Yes, Lagos Air or Eko Air or whatever they decide to call it is coming. And I score it A because it is viable. Yes, Lagos Air is more viable than Nigeria Air for many reasons which include that a convergence at Lagos does not need any push, since it is already there.
As the nation’s commercial capital where more than 80% of local flights revolve around, a successful Lagos Air will give the current local operators a really tough competitive moment. You will like that as competition will serve the customers better.
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That said, I am not of the opinion that states should operate airlines in Nigeria (excuse Lagos, a top-10 largest economy in Africa if you consider it a country). I will prefer for states to build airports and allow private sector participants to use those airports for their airlines. Be the hub and not the spoke especially in a place where the customer base is still evolving.
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A bold move from Mr. Governor: 'Over the last five months, the Deputy Governor and I have been working to put a concise plan together for the establishment of an airline, but we did not make the plan open because of the need to get adequate knowledge about the operational… pic.twitter.com/XF9XCHmdl8
— Ndubuisi Ekekwe (@ndekekwe) January 26, 2024
Not really. I think an airport in the Lekki area is a good playbook for Lagos. Over time, all the traffic will move there. The economy of Eti Osa LGA is bigger than the GDP of Gambia and Lagos’ GDP is possibly closer to Ghana’s. An airport there is not bad. But an airline, NOT a good move since Lagos cannot even run a train well.
Lagos State Unveils Ambitious Plan to Launch Commercial Airline and Construct New Airport
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