Panic in aviation sector over imminent job loss

Thousands of workers in the nation’s aviation sector may soon lose their jobs due to the economic recession– Airlines’ operators are groaning under the weight of economic challenges– Over 400 pilots including expatriates, 1,200 crew members and more than 1,000 travel agents are at risk The economic recession currently ravaging Nigeria has affected the aviation sector and there are possibilities of massive job loss.Minister of state, aviation, Captain Hadi SirikaAccording to a report by The Guardian, Bristow Helicopters, Caverton, Executive Jet and others have already trimmed their workforces, citing low patronage.Sources at Bristow Helicopters quoted disclosed that about 400 workers have been laid off, including pilots. Caverton Helicopters also reportedly posted a loss of over N2 billion in the first half of the year.READ ALSO: 7 pictures that perfectly describe the average Nigerian in this recessionThe decision of the aviation companies have prompted calls by operators and travel agencies for a declaration of a state of emergency in the Nigerian aviation sector.In response to the crisis in the sector, the federal government has pledged it would rescue the country’s distressed domestic airlines.Minister of state for aviation, Hadi Sirika, said yesterday, September 7 that government was aware of the numerous problems in the sector and will double efforts to address them so thousands of Nigerians won’t lose their jobs.Sirika made the comments at a two-day meeting with stakeholders in Lagos, where he reiterated that aviation remained central to government’s plan to revamp the economy and boost employment.In attendance at the meeting were representatives of Aero Contractors, Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), and aviation workers’ unions.The Airline Operators Association of Nigeria (AOAN) and National Association of Nigeria Travel Agencies (NANTA) were also part of the parley.They expressed concern that the remaining five domestic airlines were heavily indebted and were running fleet sizesbelow what was approved by regulatory authorities.During an emergency session with the Senate committee on aviation, yesterday, the AOAN asked the federal government for a special intervention fund to stay afloat.Speaking on behalf of the operators, the chief executive officer of Arik Airline, Chris Ndulue, regretted that the harsh economic environment in which they were operating had gone from bad to worse.At the moment, less than 30 aircraft make up the total fleet operated by domestic airlines. This represents over 50 percent cut from 65 serviceable aircraft in operation some years ago.“No airline is operating today at optimum. Everyone is down to 50 to 60 per cent capacity. Everyone is operating at a very tight margin. Government has shown support by making spare parts duty-free, but there is a whole lot that still needs to be done,”Captain Nogie Meggison, chairmanof Airline Operators of Nigeria said.NANTA President, Bernard Bankole, noted:“The issue is alarming and it calls for a state of emergency. We don’t have to wait till it collapses before we take action. Over 3,000 jobs are threatened while airlines are withdrawing. While other countries are surviving on aviation alone, ours is worsening. Government needs to do something urgently.” READ ALSO: 7 ways Nigerians can cope with the economicrecessionMeanwhile,First Nation Airways has denied insinuations that it has ended its operations.The airline has promised to return to normal scheduled flight operations by Thursday, September 15.The management says its current fleet is undergoing engine maintenance for safety operations.There were fears that the airline might have shut down its operations due tothe economic recession currently being experienced in the country.The rumours also came at a time another airline, Aero Contractors announced that it was suspending its operations.In a related development, Fourteen (14) airlines recently withdrew their services from Nigeriadue to low patronage and the bad economy being experienced in the country.