Nigeria wants local airlines to be able to use China’s C919 plane

The director general of Nigeria’s civil aviation authority told Reuters that as ties with Beijing improve and Nigerian airlines take on more aircraft, the body is considering approving China’s C919 plane for use by the nation’s carriers.

Leading Western aircraft manufacturers Airbus (AIR.PA) and Boeing (BA.N) are being challenged by Chinese manufacturer COMAC, which is building the narrow-body C919 and has had multiple discussions with Nigeria about the aircraft.

But there are obstacles in the way of state-owned COMAC’s ambitions to tap the larger African market. A new tab on delivery targets reveals that it is lagging behind and that neither of its two aircraft models have benchmark approvals from Western regulators.

This year, because of trade disputes, the United States temporarily stopped exporting the CFM (GE.N), opened a new tab (SAF.PA), and opened new tab engines that it uses.

Nigeria, home to 230 million people, has the potential to become a major aviation market.

Citing the lack of confirmation from Western authorities, Capt. Chris Ona Najomo, director general of the civil aviation authority, told Reuters that the organization is taking into account the months-long licensing process for the jet to operate on domestic flights.

Our focus is on the aircraft’s certification. First of all, we must begin there,” Najomo stated while speaking at the Montreal conference of the U.N. aviation agency.

COMAC SUPPORTING NIGERIAN CARRIERS WITH MAINTENANCE

According to Najomo, COMAC representatives had offered maintenance and training assistance for any aircraft flown by Nigerian airlines and were looking into “dry lease arrangements,” which entail renting out aircraft without a crew.

“We just told them that if they can make sure they facilitate a good dry lease arrangement, it’s better,” Najomo stated.

If certified and backed with maintenance and training support, Abdullahi Ahmed, CEO of Nigerian airline NG Eagle, stated that he would consider adding more aircraft to his fleet than the three that are now in place.

Nigeria has better adherence to the Cape Town Convention, which streamlines the leasing of aircraft equipment, as evidenced by its higher aircraft Working Group rating.

According to Najomo, this development is increasing lessor confidence, allowing the 13 airlines in the nation to lease newer aircraft.

Although many Nigerians still find flying to be expensive, IATA data shows that the average real airfare decreased by 43.6% between 2011 and 2023.

The C919 is currently only flown by Chinese carriers. Three Southeast Asian carriers also operate COMAC’s smaller C909 regional plane.