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After 11 months it was closed to traffic, the Toyota-Murtala Mohammed Airport Road link bridge has opened to traffic.

The Lagos State government had on January 10, 2021, announced the closure of the bridge following a fire accident that damaged a part of the bridge after a diesel-laden tanker exploded.

Repair works commenced on the damaged bridge after six months of closure and it was meant to open to traffic by the end of September but the government further delayed reopening to carry out additional work.

The road finally opened to traffic today.

(Bloomberg) -- Spain imposed a 10-day quarantine rule for flight passengers arriving from South Africa and another six surrounding countries, the Health Ministry said in an emailed statement. 

The order also affects travelers coming from Botwana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe, following the emergence in the southern Africa of the new coronavirus omicron variant. The restrictions will be in force for an initial 14-day period and may be extended, the ministry said.

Dutch authorities said on Sunday 13 omicron cases have been identified in the country, with infections caused by the new variant also detected in countries including the U.K. and Italy. 

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has announced that it apprehended and suspended some of its officials caught extorting a passenger at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

The agency disclosed in a statement signed by its spokesperson, Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu that those apprehended, including Aviation Security (AVSEC), Customer Service and Nigeria Immigration Services personnel have been relieved of their On Duty Card (ODC).

“In line with management’s determination to rid the nation’s airport of corrupt officials, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria has apprehended and suspended some officials caught extorting a passenger at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos.

“The officials, who are staff of Aviation Security and Customer Service departments of the Authority were immediately suspended, while the On Duty Card of their accomplice from the Nigeria Immigration Service has been withdrawn.

“This action was taken to serve as deterrent to other bad eggs in the system that are bent on tarnishing the image of the nation.”

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Churches in Zamfara State, northern Nigeria, have been threatened with attack unless they close down and stop meeting for worship.

The threat, believed to come from Islamist militants, was made in a letter sent to Nigerian police and security services.

“Let’s pray for Christians in northern Nigeria, especially in Zamfara State, as we are issued a three-year ultimatum to close all churches in the state,” requested an unnamed Nigerian church leader.

The Zamfara branch of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has directed churches not to hold meetings after 5 p.m. for the next three months, he added, while “police in the state have directed Christians to intensify security in all places of worship, pastors’ houses, other Christian centres”.  

Detective Superintendent Mohammed Shehu, spokesperson for Zamfara police, confirmed that the letter had been sent threatening churches “to stop worship and to close”.

Shehu said that police have discussed security measures with CAN, and that “a special squad” has been formed “to patrol and protect worshippers, especially on Sundays”.

“Additionally, plain-clothes personnel have been deployed for intelligence gathering and to unravel those behind the threat letter,” he explained.

Nigerian Christians, especially those in the northern and Middle Belt States, are frequently targeted with violence. As many as 10,000 Christians have been killed since 2015. In October 2021 Pastor Jospeh Hayab, chairman of Kaduna State CAN, said, “Citizens are being killed like chickens with only press statements as consolation.”

Canada said Sunday it has detected its first cases of the new Omicron strain of Covid, in two people who had traveled recently to Nigeria.

Both patients are in isolation while public health authorities trace their possible contacts, said federal and Ontario provincial officials.

“I was informed today by the Public Health Agency of Canada that testing and monitoring of Covid-19 cases has confirmed two cases of the Omicron variant of concern in Ontario,” Health Minister Jean-Yves Duclos said in a statement.

“As the monitoring and testing continues,” he added, “it is expected that other cases of this variant will be found in Canada.”

The government of Ontario confirmed that the two cases are in the capital Ottawa.

The World Health Organization has listed Omicron as a “variant of concern” and countries around the world are now restricting travel from southern Africa, where the new strain was first detected, and taking other new precautions.

The WHO says it could take several weeks to know if there are significant changes in transmissibility, severity or implications for Covid vaccines, tests and treatments.

On Friday, Canada banned travel from seven African countries over concerns about the spread of the Omicron strain. Nigeria was not one of them.

By Abdullateef Aliyu

Air Peace has announced that it will resume its flights to Dubai on December 1, 2021.

This follows the resolution of the nine-month diplomatic row between Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which stalled direct flights between both countries.

With the COVID-19 protocol which stirred the crisis reviewed, airlines can now fly passengers directly to and from Nigeria.

Nigeria’s biggest carrier, Air Peace, in a statement on Sunday said its Dubai service via Sharjah would resume on December.

The airline in the statement said, “Air Peace is delighted to inform the flying public that it will be resuming its Dubai service via Sharjah on December 1, 2021.

“This is consequent upon Federal Government’s lifting of the ban on flights from and to the UAE.

“Customers are urged to comply with all established COVID-19 protocols governing international air travel and cooperate with airport staff in this regard.”

Exactly three years and four months after the unveiling of the name and logo of the proposed national carrier known as Nigeria Air, the federal government has finally announced that the new national carrier will take off in April 2022.

The Minister of Aviation, Sen. Hadi Sirika, disclosed this when he, along with Ministers of Transportation, and Finance, Budget and National Planning, Rotimi Amaechi and Dr. Zainab Ahmed, respectively, briefed State House correspondents on the outcome of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, where the approval was given.

Daily Trust on Sunday reports that the Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, had on July 18, 2018, unveiled the name and logo at the Farnborough International Airshow in London, hinting that the airline would begin operation in December 2018 with 20 aircraft.

According to Sirika, 49 per cent of the Nigeria Air project will be owned by strategic equity partners, 46 per cent by Nigerians, while the Federal Government will own five per cent of the shares.

The minister revealed that Nigeria Air, when operational, would generate over 70,000 jobs, saying “these 70,000 jobs, they are higher than the total number of civil servants that we have in the country.”

Sirika said the government is only kick-starting the airline and handing it over to the owners to run it as a going concern devoid of government interference.

He further explained that though the airline is starting with 3 aircraft, capacity will be grown to 30 aircraft in less than five years, depending on what the investors want.

“We may hit the 30 Aircraft mark in 5years or 2 years; it depends on how they want to run their business. With what the FEC passed, the FG will have no role in the management of the airline,” he said.

He further noted that the national carrier was integrated into the Aviation Roadmap and it is a complementary procurement to all the other facilities in the Road Map like the Maintenance and Repair and Overhaul facility (MRO), the Aviation Leasing Company (ALC), and the Aerotropolis.

“The government has provided 12,000 hectares of airport land. We will have MRO there, a new terminal, MRO, etc. It will be an aerotropolis centre which will also be a free zone like the four mega airports,” he said.

He said the “MRO will be faster than the airline.” He also said the technical partners have been sourced and the ministry was waiting for FEC to approve it. “We are also targeting April 2022 for it to start. MRO is also important because it will be cheaper to maintain aircraft locally,” he said.

On the 46 per cent share reserved for Nigerian investors, he said they could access through an Initial Public Offer, private placement, or the secondary market.

However, aviation experts have expressed mixed feelings at the government’s pronouncement.

Prof. Samuel Odewunmi, a transportation expert, expressed disappointment with the manner the Federal Government is driving the national carrier project, describing it as “most catastrophic”.

“Honestly, I’m terribly disappointed,” he said.

Odewunmi, Dean, School of Transportation, Lagos State University, said the government should have concerned itself with providing a conducive environment for the local airlines to thrive.

He said, “You see the cemetery of the Nigerian Airways, you have no solution to it. You are now going into the thing again. It’s just a reflection of who we are, that one (national carrier) is unnecessary.

“What they should do is to make the environment better for the private operators. Reduce their landing charges, reduce other charges for them, then use the money to say anybody that can float a service hangar for the plane maintenance in Nigeria rather than flying our aeroplanes to Ethiopia, so that we would be able to conduct our checks in Nigeria.

An aviation analyst, Capt. Alex Nwuba, said the whole idea about it is abracadabra but said nothing is impossible where the minister who controls the NCAA is involved.

According to him, establishing a new airline cannot take less than 18 months to two years.

He said: “The whole thing is all abracadabra; nobody can explain it. You just look at it and watch to see the outcome.”

“I call this nonsense. Everything is shrouded in secrecy. Let us know what you want to do. Let people give suggestions and critique it. You want to wet-lease three aircraft, wet lease from where? We don’t know. You talk about creating 70,000 jobs. How? With three wet-lease aircraft? When you wet-lease, how many jobs have you created? You give the job to some people offshore.”

Capt. Ibrahim Mshelia, Chairman of Westlink Airlines, punctured the Minister’s claim about the national carrier creating 70,000 jobs.

He also said the project has been shrouded in secrecy, noting that transparency is key in driving any government venture.

He said, “Even before the COVID-19 heat, BA had 42,000 staff all over the world, Lufthansa had 70,000 or 80,000. These are large airlines I am talking about. KLM with 100/102 years of existence, they have just about 100,000 employees.

“Then, if you come down to our level of Kenya Airways which has just less than 5000, Etihad, a state airline for the Middle East has less than 13,000-14,000. How on earth will an airline that is a dream away, or a mirage I would say, come and employ 70,000 people?”

Mshelia also warned against circumventing any of the processes involved in the registration of an airline.

He added, “There has to be transparency in the whole exercise. He must be called to order. It would take you a minimum of 12 months to register an airline when you know the name even with government leverage because there are incubation periods for some of these certification processes.

“You need to register and when the CAC gives you a registration certificate, you need to apply for an Air Transport License (ATL) if they will be doing scheduled operations. We all know that every director has to fill a form because the ICAO-recommended practice is that all those who operate an airline must have reputable track records so we don’t have criminals doing gunrunning, money laundering, and what have you. Every director on paper must be vetted by the DSS and other security agencies. You fill a Personal History Statement (PHS) form and submit it and it would be sent to DSS who will go everywhere you put on that CV to verify.

“After the vetting, you will make an advert to last for 28 days so anyone who has an issue with the licensing of the ATL to that applicant should come up with reasons, there could be court cases going on for months or years. That should further tell you something.

“That has not been done before you get ATL so you can apply for AOC, no one needs to tell you journalists how long it takes to get AOC in Nigeria, they are not going to jump the process because it is a Nigerian project, we will not allow that, plus we are a category one CAA. They should not dare to do that, otherwise, they will lose that status.”

On his part, Capt. Roland Iyayi, the CEO, Top Brass Aviation and former managing director, the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency, NAMA said the timing for new airlines is appropriate.

“Timing of the entry may have been informed by the downturn of the industry generally, as it is a lot easier now than before to access aircraft assets cheaply. As a matter of fact, the downturn is the best time to acquire the aircraft assets.”

He also noted that the northern air market needs additional servicing. “The northern part of the country is unserviced to a large extent. Therefore, it would provide the opportunity of establishing a niche for prospective airline investors. The plan I presume would hedge the confidence of a timely recovery and niche to project viability,” he explained.

“How this plays out in the long term would be largely determined by whether or not the economy recovers expeditiously from the current depression,” he further noted.

But Capt. Alex Nwuba, President of Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), believes the market can’t support more airlines, saying the passengers’ figures are decreasing since the COVID-19 pandemic.

“In an industry where consumers are complaining, then you are hoping that the new ones would come and do it better, but at the end of the day, the market can’t support 25 airlines. It can’t even support 15 airlines, everybody would lose because the numbers are not going up, they have actually gone down as a result of the new COVID economy.

“Now, if people are not making money during the COVID economy, how will they make money in the post-COVID economy where supply is increasing and demand is declining? It is simple.”

Nigeria is among the top 10 countries in the world with the highest number of grounded aircraft.

Nigeria according to information released by Ch-aviation , an international  aviation database and consultancy services company that collects and publishes information on aircraft, airlines and airports, ranks fifth position among nine other countries including VietNam, Hong Kong, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia , Italy, the Philippines, Iran and Singapore.

According to data released by Ch- Aviation, 54 out of the 111 aircraft registered in Nigeria are active, while the other 57 are grounded accounting for 51.35 per cent of airplanes in the registry.

Officials of the regulatory body – Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) are yet to dispute the figures.

The data was silent on the airlines that have the grounded aircraft on their fleet.

Besides Nigeria, Vietnam leads the pack of countries with the highest number of grounded aircraft with 169 of airplanes accounting for 72.84 among the 232 aircraft registered in the country. 63 aircraft according to Ch- Aviation data are active in Vietnam.

According to the data, Hong Kong with 252 aircraft in its registry has 155 grounded airplanes representing 61.51 per cent to its 97 active airplanes.

Thailand on its part, with 267 airplanes has 162 grounded aircraft  representing 60.67 per cent to its 105 active aircraft.

Malaysia, with its 253 aircraft in its registry , has 142 grounded, accounting for 56.13 per cent to its active 111 aircraft.

Italy with  138 aircraft in its registry maintains a 50 per cent ratio of active and grounded aircraft.

According to Ch- Aviation data, the Philippines 215 aircraft, its grounded airplanes accounts for 102 as against 113 airplanes.

Iran on its part, with 253 airplanes in its register has 119 ground aircraft compared with its 134 active airplanes.

Singapore  with its 222 aircraft profile in its registry has 130 active airplanes compared to its 92 grounded airplanes.Indonesia with its 570 aircraft on its registry profile parades 312 active airplanes compared to 258 grounded aircraft.

According to Ch-Aviation data, narrowbody jets account for the highest number of active  airplanes in use by global carriers with  71 per cent followed by regional active jets at 62 per cent .

Regional turboprop propellers active aircraft account for 55 per cent whereas widebody jets account for 39 per cent  active aircraft by market group.

For grounded aircraft, widebody jets  account  for 39 per cent , followed by regional turbo propellers leading with 45 per cent.Regional jets account for 38 per cent of grounded airplanes whereas narrowbody jets stand at 29 per cent.

According to Chi – Aviation,  the total global fleet size currently counts 28,083 aircraft, of which 22,764 are active, and 5,319 are grounded in September 2021.

Ch-Aviation statistics revealed : ” The active aircraft fleet grew by 22 per ce from September 2020 to September 2021.

“Asia and North America have firmly established themselves at the top when it comes to continents with the most active aircraft. Asia currently counts 7,657, whereas North America has 7,025 active aircraft.

Europe ranks third with 5,737 active aircraft, followed by Africa (881), South America (855), and Oceania (609).

(Bloomberg) -- The Dutch government will force bars and restaurants to close in the evening for the next three weeks, seeking to cap a surge in coronavirus infections that has heaped pressure on the nation’s battered health system and gripped much of western Europe.

The country will enter an evening lockdown, with non-essential sites from cinemas to gyms shutting down at 5 p.m. each day from Sunday. Supermarkets will close from 8 p.m., and schools will be unaffected.

“The infections are high, higher, highest every day,” Prime Minister Mark Rutte said Friday at an emergency press conference in The Hague. “We need new measures that will ask a lot from us all.”

The government also announced an extra 2.2 billion-euro program for businesses to ease the impact of the latest measures, including support to pay employee salaries and other fixed costs.

Despite being in a partial lockdown for the past two weeks, the country has failed to stem a jump in infections even though more than two-thirds of the population has had at least two vaccine doses. Throughout the pandemic, a limited capacity of intensive-care beds has created a bottleneck for the country.

Beds Crisis

For every 100,000 residents, there are just seven ICU beds, compared with 48 in Germany and 19 in France, according to a University of Oxford study that compiled OECD, World Bank and government records. Previously, German hospitals have admitted Dutch patients to help ease the pressure but Germany is now facing rising numbers of its own.

The latest measures come as a new variant, first detected in Botswana and South Africa, threatens to derail a tentative recovery in the global economy. Financial markets tumbled across the world Friday as the mutation, called a “Variant of Concern” by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, prompted governments from the U.K. to Hong Kong to bar travelers from southern Africa.

The Netherlands also trails its EU peers when it comes to booster vaccines. While countries like Austria and Belgium, countries with smaller populations, administered respectively 1.6 million and 1.3 million boosters, the Dutch so far only have processed approximately 100.000 doses according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

The majority of corona victims that end up in the hospital have not been vaccinated. The deadly combination of the current rate of high infections, the limited amount of ICU beds and postponed medical treatments for other patients, has forced the government to take stricter measures -- measures that prompted riots last weekend in Rotterdam.

“Last year we all thought that a grand vaccination strategy would result in less stringent measures today,” Rutte said. “That is what the government thought, that is what experts thought, but the reality is very different.”

(Bloomberg) -- Mexico will require Brazilian tourists to obtain visas to enter the country as it tries to stem a surge of U.S.-bound migrants from across Latin America.

Mexico’s Foreign Ministry announced in a statement Friday that due to “increased flows of irregular” migration, the government would suspend a no-visa pact it’s held with Brazil since 2004. The accord between the two largest Latin American economies will be “temporarily” halted as of Dec. 11, it said.

“Sadly, criminal groups profit, through deception, from the interest of Brazilian nationals to migrate irregularly to the U.S.,” the ministry said.

The Biden administration is grappling with an unprecedented wave of migration on the U.S. southern border, with some 1.7 million people encountered trying to cross this year, according to U.S Customs and Border Protection.

Read More: Record U.S. Border Crossings Kindle GOP Rebuke of Biden Policies

The majority of migrants apprehended, almost 1.4 million, hailed from Mexico and the Northern Triangle in Central America. But the coronavirus and ensuing economic crash spurred hundreds of thousands of people, primarily from other nations in Latin America and the Caribbean, to leave their homes.

Unlike many Haitians and Cubans, who often start their journeys deep within South America and travel by land, migrants from Brazil typically fly to Mexico City before heading north.

In the year through September, nearly 57,000 migrants from Brazil were caught into trying to enter the U.S. from Mexico. That compares to about 7,000 in same period last year, and almost 18,000 in 2019.

The restrictions follow a similar decision by the Mexican government earlier this year to suspend visa exemptions for Ecuadorans. In October, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke with his Brazilian counterpart Carlos Franca to discuss ways the two nations could slow irregular regional migration heading north.