Who needs a national carrier?

Sam Adurogboye, a former General Manager of Public Affairs at the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority

What is a national carrier? A dictionary defines it as a transportation company, such as an airline or shipping line, officially designated or owned by a government to represent the country. It often connects the nation to the rest of the world, carries the country’s flag, and receives special rights or support from the state.

Key features of a national carrier include being fully owned or partially backed by the State, serving as a symbol of the country’s identity and power abroad, and often receiving special permission to fly certain routes.

The last state-owned national carrier in the country was Nigeria Airways, which ceased operations in 2003 under former President Olusegun Obasanjo. This decision, though controversial and politicised, was perceived to be in conformity with the earlier deregulation of the sector by the government. The deregulation policy brought private participation into the sector.

The government’s decision to hand over ownership and operations of airlines was based on the premise that businessmen should be allowed to run businesses, while the government should focus on policy formulation and creating an enabling environment for businesses to thrive.

Before the scrapping, Nigeria Airways was among the dominant national carriers in Africa. At that time, Kenya Airways, South African Airways, Ethiopian Airlines and EgyptAir were also among them. Only Ethiopian Airlines is still on the path to profitability. The virus of mismanagement has infected almost all the others. Thus, it is an unrealistic proposition to advise any government to continue to own a national carrier in the name of flag flying for Nigeria. I know this position of mine is not going to be popular, but I have a right to it.

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The virus of mismanagement didn’t spare the European national carriers either. British Airways is a perfect example of a privately owned airline which is still flying the British flag to its destinations. Some key Nigerians are part owners of British Airways. But the government still supported her in all her endeavours.

The proponent of a national carrier may want to argue that it is a vehicle for global travel via its connection of cities to international destinations. Today, British Airways is doing just that for Britain profitably.

Alternatively, the proponent of a national carrier may want to say that it is a vehicle for Trade and tourism, and I make bold to say that all the designated Nigerian privately owned airlines on international routes are doing the same for the country as we read this write-up.

I don’t think that a national carrier could have performed better than what Air Peace had done for Nigeria in times of emergencies in moving citizens out of crisis-ridden countries. Yes, at a fee, but not in all situations. Remember, such flights cost money in fuel and overhead costs. These types of deployments of national carriers without consideration for overhead costs were part of the issues that make a national carrier not the way to go for the government.

You cannot set up an airline for profit and at the same time for welfare purposes. It’s like eating your cake and still wanting to have it. Impossible. Let’s choose one. Let’s support our airlines in their domestic and international operations, as in the case of Ethiopian Airlines. By doing so, more indigenous investors would come, do business professionally, prosper in it and increase our Gross Domestic Product. This is the way to go.