THE Federal Government is believed to be in consultations with Nigerian banks for a liberal credit facility for aviation sector, where some airlines are already in distress.At the end of the consultation, the airlines might access fund at single digit interest rate from the banks, going by indications from the Aviaition Minister, Princess Stella Oduah.The minister, who was represented at a seminar in Lagos, by her Special Assistant on Media, Joe Obi, spoke on the rising cost of aviation fuel, especially the perennial scarcity of the product in the aviation industry and the efforts by government to find a lasting.Oduah explained that the ministry was currently discussing with the Ministry of Petroleum Resources on how to find a permanent solution to the recurring crisis.She insisted that the report of the committee submitted to the ministry was not dead, adding that part of their recommendations was what the ministry is now implementing.The Federal Government, he said, would soon come out with a 'tangible, workable and visible report' for the industry.She however, advised indigenous airlines to consolidate their operations for profit purposes. She therefore, suggested a merger of one or more, saying it was the only way their operations could be strengthened.Although Oduah said that government would not force airlines to merge, she noted that it is the new trend globally.'Airline consolidation is necessary. The airlines should consolidate with one and others and I want them to know that the era of trying to be chief executive officers with only one aircraft is since over. They should jettison this, but the government will never force these airlines to merge. However, we want them to take a second look at the option,' she said.Oduah further assured that the airfield lighting at the domestic runway of the Murtala Mohammed Airport, Lagos will be fixed at the end of the ongoing remodeling of the airport.She regretted the inconveniences the airlines have been experiencing over the years due to airfield lighting, especially at night when they would have to taxi to the international runway to take off from the airport.'This is part of the holistic agenda that we are undertaking and I want to assure everybody that at the end of the exercise, what you will see elsewhere is what you will find here. At the end of the remodeling, the lighting will be fixed and functional.'The Director-General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr. Harold Demuren, said that airlines in Nigeria sold tickets worth N225 billion last year., while 90 per cent of the revenue earned in the same period were from two airports- Lagos and Abuja, which recorded a cargo movement of 122,700 tonnes.
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