The Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, says the nation’s proposed national carieer, Nigeria Air, will take off by April 2022.
The minister announced the take-off date while briefing state house correspondents after the federal executive council (FEC) meeting at the presidential villa, Abuja on Wednesday, November 24.
He said the national carrier will be run by a company in which the Nigerian government will hold a five percent stake while Nigerian entrepreneurs will hold 46 percent. According to Sirika, the remaining 49 percent will be reserved for yet to be assigned strategic equity partners, including foreign investors.
The Minister added that when the national carrier begins operations, it will create about 70,000 jobs for Nigerians.
Responding to a question on whether the April date takeoff for the air carrier is certain, Sirika said
“Well, the best case is that the airline will pick up that period, April 2022 all things being equal. But since it’s an outline of the business we will follow the outline of the business.
It is our hope and desire that it starts on April. It can be sacrosanct records but it’s dependent upon other factors, since we are going to the market right away.”
In 2018, the federal government unveiled Nigeria Air, at the Farnborough International Public Airshow in London. The federal government later suspended the proposed airline due to investor apathy.
