FG to approve foreign airlines’ summer schedule

Minister of Aviation, Mrs. Stella Odua

Indications emerged late on Wednesday that the summer flight schedule of the 24 foreign airlines operating into Nigeria might be approved before the end of this week.

Our correspondent gathered that the Federal Government through the Ministry of Aviation had begun moves to fast-track the approval process following a story by The PUNCH on Wednesday that the affected airlines might stop flying into the country because of the non-approval of their summer schedules.

The foreign airlines are currently in dilemma on whether to stop or continue flights into the country because of the failure of the Federal Government to approve their summer schedule five days after the expiration of the winter schedule on March 28, 2013.

It is illegal for any airline to fly into another country without getting approval for its winter and summer seasonal schedules from the host, according to aviation experts.

The approval is usually given days ahead of the expiration of the current season’s schedule in order to avoid a situation where an airline has to ground its flight operations while waiting for approval.

The Foreign Airline Schedule Approval, a six-month periodical document, must be signed and submitted by all foreign airlines operating in the country

The Winter Approval Schedule expired on March 30, 2013, and is supposed to be replaced with the Summer Approval Schedule from March 31 to September 29, 2013.

Although most of the foreign airlines have begun implementing their winter schedules, which have yet to be approved by the Ministry of Aviation, industry experts described the situation as being risky as insurance companies may refuse to pay compensation if a disaster should occur during one of the flights

Source close to the ministry, however, told our correspondent on Wednesday that the 2013 summer schedule was already receiving expedited attention from the Schedule Approval Committee and the minister

“The approval will be given any moment from now. Media reports have forced the ministry to give it urgent and expedited attention,” the source said

Also, top executives of some of the foreign airlines also confirmed that the approval could be given any time soon

“The ministry is already looking into the schedule. They are doing something already; lets see what will happen soon,” the chief executive of one of the European carriers said on Wednesday

The final approval is usually given by the Aviation minister based on the recommendations of the Schedule Approval Committee comprising officials of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria and Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority, and headed by a director in the ministry.

The Special Assistant (Media) to the Minister of Aviation, Mr. Joe Obi, did not react to media enquiry on the development on Wednesday

Obi had on Tuesday said that the Minister of Aviation, Ms. Stella Oduah, did not refused to approve the foreign airlines’ summer schedules, adding that they would be approved very soon