Nigeria is not benefitting from the lucrative international flights to different destinations in the world, which are known for providing the highest yield in Africa.
According to records from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority , in 2021 British Airways operated 587 flights to Nigeria, Emirates 225 because it stopped operating to Nigeria most of last year due to the impasse United Arab Emirates had with the federal government over COVID-19 Protocol. Ethiopian Airline operated 828 flights; Kenya Airways operated 271 flights, KLM, 229, Lufthansa, 555 flights; Qatar Airways, 679, Turkish Airlines, 669, Virgin Atlantic, 363 and Delta Air Line, 350.
He also observed that most of these expensive seats snapped up by Nigerians are paid by government, corporate institutions and well to do Nigerians.
Director of Operations, Cargolux Airlines and the President of Association of Foreign Airlines Representatives in Nigeria , Kingsley Nwokoma, told THISDAY on Wednesday that the cost of doing business in Nigeria is very high when compared to other countries. A country manager of one of the foreign airlines in Nigeria told THISDAY that the way foreign airlines deal with Nigeria is the way they also deal with any other country they operate in; that nobody provides anything extra.