AIR PEACE has successfully obtained the Foreign Carrier Operator Permit (FCOP), which permits airlines from other areas to fly to Europe, and the Third Country Operator Permit (TCO-UK), which allows airlines to operate to the UK.
Allen Onyema, Chairman/CEO of Air Peace, stated that the permits were obtained last week after clearing the tough audits conducted by the UK authorities.
In an interview with journalists on the occasion of the airline’s ninth anniversary, the Chairman lamented the lack of a transit facility in any Nigerian airport, which would allow the airline to invite customers from other African countries to join their international flights.
The airline, in addition to serving numerous West African countries, also serves some foreign destinations such as India, Israel, South Africa, and Jeddah (Saudi Arabia), among others.
With the airline scaling the UK audit, the airline’s next international destination on the radar is Britain, where it hopes to crash fares. The United Kingdom is one of the most profitable routes for airlines serving Nigeria, but it is also one of the most expensive, with one-way tickets costing as much as N2 million, especially on British carriers.
The Chairman of Air Peace stated that the airline underwent severe assessments to guarantee that it satisfied the high safety status, capacity, and standard conditions of the UK, and that it is now qualified to fly to the UK.
“We obtained these permits, which allow us to fly to the United Kingdom.” They will thoroughly audit you before issuing these approvals. You have to pass a rigorous audit, which we did. “We got the permit last week,” he explained.
He noted that the lack of transit facilities at the country’s international airports is a serious concern for Nigerian airlines.
Onyema, who commended Nigerians and the federal government for their contributions to the airline’s success as it celebrated its ninth birthday last week, stated that the lack of transit facilities at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos and the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja has hampered Nigerian airlines’ competitiveness.
He added that Air Peace serves destinations in West and Central Africa and that it will transport passengers from Douala, Banjul, Accra, Lome, Monrovia, Dakar, Freetown, and other cities to its hub in Lagos, from which they will fly to India, China, South Africa, Jeddah, and other long-distance destinations.
“But unfortunately, we don’t have a transit facility where these passengers will stay until they board their next flight and Nigeria Immigration Service and Nigeria Customs Service are yet to segment this class of passengers who in other countries are made to wait in the transit facility on the airside until they are due to fly again.
“Currently Immigration treats them like other passengers whose final destination is Nigeria and are expected to obtain a visa and follow other procedures like other passengers who are arriving Nigeria. What is usually obtained is that as long as the passengers are not leaving the airport, they do not need a visa because they are on transit.”
