November 03, (THEWILL) – Fast-growing domestic carrier, United Nigeria Airlines (UNA) has started receiving some of the aircraft out of the six E190 expected between now and the second quarter of 2025.
The first aircraft, registered SX-PTM, was supplied under a wet lease by Marathon Airlines and landed in Lagos on October 31, 2024. While the second one is expected shortly, the carrier is equally expecting two in the first quarter and another two in the second quarter of 2025.
As part of its expansion plan, the airline has also signed a joint venture partnership agreement in the areas of setting up Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) in Nigeria and another bordering on interline and Codeshare agreements.
Speaking at the signing of the MoUs at the airline’s corporate office in Ikeja, Lagos, on Friday, the Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines, Prof Obiora Okonkwo, said the codesharing is to enable United Nigeria expand their operations in the region since Cronos Aviation is already operating in some parts of the West African area.
He said, “Interline and Codeshare Agreement will help us to integrate services and provide strong regional operations and also help in commercial activities. Interline will help us in the fifth freedom that is going on in the aviation ecosystem in Nigeria.”
According to Prof Okonkwo, Cronos has an existing MRO in South Africa at O.R Tambo International Airport and has been operating for over 13 years with the certification to do Embraer and 737.
“We have a plan to have about 6 aircraft in that category of E190 between now and the second quarter of next year. Hopefully, we will have the second one shortly. In the first quarter, we are going to have two. And then in the second quarter of next year, we are going to have an additional two. For us, it is a new fleet. We have to develop the capacity of both the cabin crew, cockpit crew and ground engineering crew. This is also part of the partnership that we have signed.
“We are signing an MRO to set up such services here in Nigeria. As you may know, we do not have an MRO of service capability to do base services. We can only do line services in some of our fleets. Even as little as private jets, we have to fly them across countries to be serviced. This is costing us a lot of resources. This has been creating a high cost for operators in Nigeria.
On the benefits of the partnership, Okonkwo said, “We have no doubt that with this, we will not only be saving cost of operations for United Nigeria. We should as well, be offering services to other operators who might need them. That will also help the nation to save our scarce foreign exchange and open a new door for participation in aviation because other countries will also visit us to enjoy or benefit from our services. Sometimes, we complain about delays and that has to do with AOG. When AOG comes, safety and high technical standards are a watchword of Nigerian operations.”
Commending the NCAA, the airline operator added “I give kudos to the NCAA and their regulatory procedures. We think that with MRO located in Nigeria, we will develop the capacity to be able to attend to technical issues more quickly. This has multidimensional benefits accorded to United Nigeria Airlines and also to the entire industry in areas of saving forex, manpower development and technology and know-how transfer.
“Cronos also has operations going on in some West African countries and they come in and out of Port Harcourt from time to time so this interline and codeshare agreement will help us to put all the infrastructure and take all the necessary steps to integrate services and to provide strong regional operations which you know will open up air travel in the regions. It will also help some commercial activities. Interline is very very important. It will also help us in the areas of fifth freedom rights that are already in place in the aviation ecosystem in Nigeria”, the airline operator assured.
Explaining further how the MRO partnership would help the industry, Okonkwo reasoned that, as it is, there are more aircraft on the ground than the ones flying in the country.
He, therefore, believes that if operators in the country have easily accessible and available maintenance centres, it will make the turnaround of maintenance very quick.
“It will also help to train manpower and give more opportunities to people which you know is one of our delights. We pride ourselves in manpower development. I remember, when we started about three and half years ago, the aviation sector wasn’t that robust in Nigeria. So, a lot of people have graduated and we don’t have a place to fix them. Some of the engineers too have no place to work”, Okonkwo said.
On their readiness to operate the newly acquired aircraft, the Chairman informed that their first set of cockpit crew had started their training for E190 already, adding that when they finish their ground training, they will start flying outside the cockpit for their simulator training.
“The engineers that are on the ground had already signed to start training with our line engineers on the ground. The good news is that our cabin crew to man the E190 had completed a greater part of their training, some overseas and they have just returned. This training will earn them, not only Nigerian certifications but also the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) certification as well. We take training very seriously in United Nigeria Airlines”.
However, there are desires to cite the MRO in Enugu when it comes on board because the Enugu State Government has demonstrated good intentions towards the project. Okonkwo however, disclosed that “it would have been our desire to cite it in Enugu because the Enugu State Government has demonstrated some good intentions. But it is important to back intentions with action. We have alternative options to Enugu but it’s a commercial secret for now”.
On the type of lease arrangements for the E190, Okonkwo said it is a combination of both, explaining that “it is a combination of both. We have some that we are purchasing, we have some that we are downplaying. The important thing is that we develop the capacity and know-how. In fact, what we have now is downplaying that we are part of the operation.
Also speaking at the signing, Chief Executive Officer, Marathon Airlines, Andreas Kaiafas said that Cronos Aviation is partnering with the Chairman of United Nigeria Airlines, Prof Okonkwo because of the confidence they have in him.
Noting that there has been a gap in terms of MRO in the region, Kaiafas said, “It is not only to do maintenance for Nigerian airlines but also other airlines in the region. We are looking at optimising costs.”
Recounting how Cronos Aviation started, Kaiafas emphasised that the company was founded in South Africa around 2011 because they wanted to offer quality services to their own aircraft.
Anthony Awunor, is a business correspondent who holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Linguistics (UNILAG). He is also an alumnus of the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), Zaria Kaduna State. He lives in Lagos.
