Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has escalated the issue of Air Peace’s lack of slots at London Heathrow by writing to UK Secretary of State for Transport, Louise Haigh.
Keyamo’s letter, dated August 1, 2024, warns that if Air Peace is not allocated a slot at Heathrow, Nigeria will consider restricting British Airways and Virgin Atlantic from operating at Lagos and Abuja airports.
Air Peace, Nigeria’s flag carrier, has been relegated to operating from Gatwick, a secondary airport, due to the unavailability of slots at Heathrow.
Keyamo expressed dissatisfaction with the UK’s failure to provide a slot despite Nigeria’s approval for Air Peace to fly the Abuja-London route starting November 2024.
In his letter, Keyamo emphasized the principle of reciprocity enshrined in the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) between Nigeria and the UK, arguing that Nigerian carriers should receive the same access to UK airports that British airlines have to Nigerian airports.
He criticized the British authorities for their lack of responsiveness and suggested that this could jeopardize the future access of British carriers to Nigerian tier-one airports unless the issue is resolved.
The minister urged for a prompt resolution to the slot allocation issue, underscoring the impact on Nigeria’s aviation sector and national pride.
The outcome of this diplomatic intervention could significantly affect the operations of both Nigerian and British airlines.