Nigeria Launches New National Airline

Nigeria’s government has announced that a new national airline – Nigeria Air – will start operating in December.

The name and logo was unveiled by the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika, at an airshow in London.

The government announced last year that it was investing almost $5m (£3.8m) to build a new national airline – 14 years after state-owned Nigeria Airways went bust.

“Nigeria has unfortunately not been a serious player in aviation for a long time. We used to be a dominant player, through Nigeria Airways, but sadly not anymore,” Mr Sirika said.

The government would have a maximum stake of 5% in the airline, he said, adding:

“This will be a national carrier that is private sector led and driven. It is a business, not a social service. The government will not be involved in running it or deciding who runs it. The investors will have full responsibility for this.

Source: BBC