Brazil urged to set up aircraft maintenance centre in Nigeria

By Kelvin Osa OkunborChairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, has called on the Brazilian aircraft manufacturer, Embraer to establish a maintenance, overhaul and repair (MRO) facility in Nigeria.His request was in response to the delivery of the first, Embraer E195-E2 out of the 13 firm orders, which arrived at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja from Recife airport, Brazil.Air Peace is the first African carrier to take delivery of the brand new aircraft type with 30 requests, which include 13 firm orders and 17 purchase right orders, coming second to Lufthansa globally, which ordered 35 airplanes.Speaking about the aircraft type, the President/ CEO, Commercial Business Aviation, Embraer, Mr. Arjan Meija, said: The E195-E2 tagged Profit Hunter aircraft will help Air Peace achieve its ambition of connecting not just all of Nigeria, but the whole of the African continent, while feeding long-haul flights from their Lagos hub.The Embraer fleet will create greater regional and domestic connectivity from the carriers Lagos hub. Apart from the 13 195-E2s on firm order, Air Peace has purchase rights for 17 more of the aircraft according to Embraer, he said.Receiving the aircraft in Nigeria, which landed at 2 pm at the Abuja Airport, Onyema thanked President Muhammadu Buhari for making the delivery of the ordered plane possible.Onyema said the airline would not pay Value Added Tax and Customs duties on the new planes, describing it as big financial relief.He also thanked the Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika for his tireless support and encouragement to Nigerian airlines, noting that it was in response to this challenge that spurred Air Peace to order the new aircraft.The Air Peace Chairman also thanked the National Assembly Committees on Aviation for facilitating the passage of the waiver to airlines, adding that the 13 aircraft would create 8000 jobs for Nigerians.Sirika described the aircraft delivery by Air Peace as a step in the right direction.He said the bold step by the airline aligns with the Federal Governments road map for the aviation sector.The Minister said the use of newer airplanes by Nigerian carriers will change the dynamics in airlines profitability and sustainability; by driving down maintenance and fueling cost.Brazilian Ambassador to Nigeria, Ricardo Guerra de Araujo, said the feat of Air Peace was a remarkable for Nigeria and Africa, as Air Peace is the launch customer of this aircraft type on the continent.The ambassador also expressed optimism that Air Peace would consider direct flights between Nigeria and Brazil.
Click here to read full news..