- Nigerians, of course the rich, have taken to buying private jets or chartering aircraft so that they can get to where they want with ease. As this aspect of aviation, popularly called general aviation, is growing faster in the country, IME AKPAN takes a look at the economic implications vis-à-vis the federal government’s resolve to formulate policies to regulate the business
General aviation covers a large range of activities, both commercial and non-commercial, including private flying, hajj operations, flight training, air ambulance, police aviation, aerial firefighting, air charter, bush flying, gliding, skydiving and many others. It involves all civil aviation operations other than scheduled air services and non-scheduled air transport operations for remuneration or hire.
At the recent commissioning of the General Aviation Terminal (GAT) for private and charter operations at the Nnamdi Azikiwe Airport, Abuja, the managing director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mr. George Uriesi, raised the bar for general aviation saying it is a good source of revenue to the agency that should be developed.
Uriesi said the sub-sector of the airline industry is growing at an accelerated rate adding that people would be amazed at the level of growth in chartered services as Abuja alone accounts for more than 40 take offs and landings of chartered aircraft or privately owned ones.
"We have something like 40 private chartered flight a day in Abuja alone and all have one passenger or three or six passengers and so it is a premium service and obviously attracts premium tickets and so the mathematics tell us that it will pay for itself and make profit."
"Private jet flights have experienced the largest growth in the last two years. All over the world, they give private jet operators their own terminals because they are commercially important people. These are people who want to make a better use of their time by going on private jets instead of experiencing delays associated with boarding the regular commercial flight," he said.
General aviation’s economic benefits are difficult to measure quantitatively but a series of studies done for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the United States on its effects on economic activity, jobs, and earnings, said general aviation’s contribution to the national economy has grown in the past decade.
A report issued for FAA in 2000 estimated that in 1998, general aviation generated about $64.5 billion in total economic activity at the national level, an increase of $26.5 billion from the 1988 level of $38 billion. In 1998, general aviation accounted for about 0.7 percent of the gross domestic product and seven percent of the total contribution of civil aviation. However, according to these estimates, general aviation makes important contributions in terms of economic output, jobs, and earnings that are generated.
It is particularly popular in North America, with over 6,300 airports available for public use by pilots of general aviation aircraft, around 5,200 airports in the U.S., and over 1,000 in Canada.
The U.S. Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association said general aviation provides more than one percent of the US’ gross domestic product, accounting for 1.3 million jobs in professional services and manufacturing.
With the success recorded in some other countries, Uriesi said such an important aspect of aviation should not be ignored.
"It is our fastest growing segment and you will be amazed at the level of growth. The quiet airports are taking five to six charter flights daily because that is the way this segment gets around so you will be surprised that these charter or private jets in Kano, in Kaduna, in Yola who have their jets are taking them in and out every day," said Uriesi.
In China, its civil aviation authorities have estimated that by 2020 the country will need more than 9,000 aircraft in the general aviation field. Related industries, led by the booming general aviation industry, will add a huge market valued about 60 billion Yuan.
"The general aviation industry has a longer industrial chain which could create more job opportunities and government revenue compared to the car and real estate industries," said Gao Yuanyang, a professor with the Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
"In the long run, its contribution to China’s economy will grow significantly — just like it has in the United States, which currently has 230,000 general aviation aircraft contributing $150 billion to its economy every year," Gao added.
"It is estimated that a mature general aviation industry can add a growth of five to eight percent to the gross domestic product. The economic scale of China’s general aviation industry reached about 12 billion Yuan in 2010, but there is still a large gap from reaching the goal of the industry," said the vice president of China National Helicopter Corporation,” Xia Qunlin.
The Chinese government also said in its 12th five-year plan for 2011-2015 period that it will promote the general aviation industry’s development, reform the airspace management system and increase the efficiency of the allocation and utilization of airspace resources.
Besides, nearly 20 provinces and regions are making plans for the general aviation industry, and 14 of them have put developing the general aviation industry into their 12th Five-Year plans.
"It’s not surprising that local governments are doing this, if you take into consideration the industry’s growing contribution to local economies," said the director of the China branch of Textron, a company known for its Bell helicopters and Cessna aircraft, Lin Mingyang.
In the Commonwealth of Virginia, 57 general aviation airports generate 5,200 jobs and economic activity worth about $730 million, Lin said, citing an example from the United States.
"With government support, more investment and a better understanding of general aviation from the public, the industry will boom in the next 20 years," said Jin.
In Nigeria, however, not all airports are viable enough for general aviation to thrive. Uriesi said FAAN had concluded plans to build additional private jet terminals at Kaduna, Port Harcourt, Enugu and Yola airports but added that the agency would not build such facilities at places that do not have the potential for that kind of aviation activity.
"There are some airports with no activities, we are not doing this there, we are only doing it where there are activities and those are the airports I mentioned," he said.
Meanwhile, the federal government has had some issues with the way and manner in which the general aviation sub-sector is run. It wants to regulate its operations in line with international standards.
Most countries have authorities that oversee all civil aviation, including general aviation, adhering to the standardized codes of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). These include FAA, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in the United Kingdom, the Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA) in Germany, and Transport Canada in Canada.
The minister of aviation, Princess Stella Oduah said prior to the boost in this aspect of business, there were no specific regulations for operators of general aviation business and that in view of the importance of this particular sub-sector of the industry, there is an urgent need to put in place regulations guiding their operations.
Source: BluePrint
