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United Nigeria Airlines operates the first scheduled commercial flight into Ekiti Agro-Allied International Cargo Airport on 10 December 2025, six years after construction began on the state-funded facility in Ado-Ekiti.

Nigeria hosts its first-ever International Airshow from 2-4 December 2025 at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, drawing global manufacturers, airlines and regulators as the government positions the country as an emerging African aviation hub.

The federal government designates Victor Attah International Airport in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, for international operations on 27 November 2025, with aviation minister Festus Keyamo citing its near-complete MRO facility and 3.6-kilometre runway.

The NCAA imposes a N5 million fine on Qatar Airways on 19 November 2025 for consumer protection infractions, two months after accusing the airline of mistreating a Nigerian passenger detained in Doha.

Air Peace receives a dry-leased Boeing 737-700NG from AerCap Holdings on 8 November 2025, marking Nigeria's first dry-lease aircraft delivery in nearly a decade and a milestone in restoring the country's standing with global lessors.

Gateway International Airport in Ilishan-Iperu, Ogun State, begins commercial operations on 7 October 2025, with a ValueJet aircraft carrying the first passengers to Abuja as Governor Dapo Abiodun marks the culmination of a project first launched in 2021.

Ibom Air bans passenger Comfort Emmanson for life and the Airline Operators of Nigeria places her on an industry-wide no-fly list after she allegedly assaulted cabin crew on a Lagos-bound flight from Uyo on 10 August 2025.

The NCAA suspends the licences of two ValueJet pilots and places Fuji musician Wasiu Ayinde (KWAM1) on a no-fly list after he prevented a flight from departing Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on 5 August 2025.

Enugu Air, the Enugu State government's new commercial carrier, operates its first flight from Lagos to Enugu on 7 July 2025, with aviation minister Festus Keyamo and Governor Peter Mbah presiding over the inauguration at Akanu Ibiam International Airport.

The NCAA sanctions Kenya Airways on 7 May 2025 and gives the carrier seven days to compensate affected passengers, after a Nigerian traveller's viral complaint about alleged mistreatment at a transfer desk.

Emirates resumes daily flights between Dubai and Lagos on 1 October 2024, two years after suspending Nigerian operations over trapped revenue, following diplomatic engagement between the Tinubu government and the United Arab Emirates.

A Dana Air aircraft skids off the runway while landing at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on 23 April 2024, prompting the Minister of Aviation to direct the NCAA to suspend the airline's operations for a full safety and financial audit.

Air Peace operates its first direct flight from Lagos to London Gatwick on 30 March 2024, becoming the first Nigerian carrier in years to fly the route after securing UK authorisation and, eventually, landing slots at Gatwick.

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria reopens Runway 18R/36L at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on 17 February 2024, ending nearly a year of international traffic being squeezed onto the airport's domestic runway.

Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo directs the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria to relocate its corporate headquarters from Abuja back to Lagos, reversing a 2020 policy and citing nearly half a billion naira spent yearly on staff flying between the two cities.

A formal letter from Nigeria's aviation minister to his British counterpart threatened to deny British Airways and Virgin Atlantic their slots at Lagos and Abuja unless Air Peace was allocated landing rights at London

An offshore helicopter chartered by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation went down in the Atlantic Ocean off Rivers State with eight people on board, in one of the deadliest Nigerian aviation incidents of the

After years of foreign carriers threatening to suspend Nigerian routes over unrepatriated ticket revenue, the Central Bank of Nigeria cleared a backlog exceeding $831 million in June 2024, drawing confirmation from the

A practice direction signed by the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in September 2024 resolved long-standing aircraft leasing disputes under the Cape Town Convention, lifting Nigeria off a global aviation watch list and

A new online platform inaugurated by the aviation minister gives Nigerian air passengers a direct channel to lodge complaints against airlines and follow the progress of their cases, part of a wider push to improve the flying

Nigeria's consumer protection watchdog announced a formal investigation into Air Peace over allegations of exploitative ticket pricing, a probe the airline said unfairly ignored the exchange rate and cost pressures driving its

A directive scrapping joint security agency inspections at Nigerian airports was announced by the aviation minister in December 2024, part of a broader effort to reduce opportunities for corrupt practices in passenger

All four rear landing gear tyres burst as a Max Air Boeing 737 accelerated for takeoff at Yola Airport, forcing a rejected takeoff that left the aircraft disabled on the runway with all 125 people aboard

A new electronic tag system for VIP access at airport toll gates, introduced in January 2024, raised close to N2.8 billion in its first ten months of operation, funds the authority said were channelled into security and

Staff at Nigeria's civil aviation regulator credited their acting director-general with resolving years of unpaid housing and promotion allowances in 2024, part of a welfare push that came alongside long-delayed staff

The National Bureau of Statistics reports that average domestic airfares rose 11.01 percent year-on-year in November 2023, driven by soaring Jet A1 prices and naira scarcity following the removal of fuel subsidies.

A ValueJet aircraft slides off the taxiway after landing at Port Harcourt International Airport on 14 November 2023, with the airline confirming no injuries among passengers and crew and no damage to the aircraft.

Following talks between President Bola Tinubu and UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi, Nigeria's presidency announces on 11 September 2023 that the UAE has lifted its year-long visa ban and that Emirates and Etihad will resume Nigeria flights.

The International Civil Aviation Organization's Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme gives Nigeria an Effective Implementation score of 70.12 percent following a September 2023 review, below the 75 percent benchmark, though up from 67.1 percent in 2016.

New Aviation Minister Festus Keyamo suspends the Nigeria Air national carrier project and ongoing airport concession agreements on 31 August 2023, pending a full review of both initiatives.

Festus Keyamo is sworn in on 21 August 2023 as Nigeria's Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development under President Bola Tinubu, taking over an industry facing scrutiny over the Nigeria Air project and trapped foreign airline funds.

The International Air Transport Association says Nigeria is withholding $783 million in foreign airlines' ticket revenue as of August 2023, cementing the country's position as the world's largest holder of blocked airline funds.

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria says it completed the airlift of roughly 73,000 pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for the 2023 Hajj within its planned timeline, even as pilgrims and travel agents report delays and accommodation complaints during the exercise.

Aero Contractors has not operated a single flight since 14 June 2023, when its sole serviceable Boeing 737 declared an emergency and returned to Abuja shortly after departing for Sokoto, exposing the airline's shrinking operational fleet.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority publishes Nig.CARs 2023, the fourth amendment to the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations, superseding the 2015 edition and taking effect from 1 July 2023.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission summons former Aviation Minister Hadi Sirika on 15 June 2023 to explain how N3 billion budgeted for the Nigeria Air project was spent, as scrutiny of the stalled national carrier intensifies.

The House of Representatives Committee on Aviation calls the unveiling of Nigeria Air a fraud on 6 June 2023 and asks the federal government to suspend the national carrier project pending a full review.

President Bola Tinubu announces the immediate end of Nigeria's petrol subsidy in his 29 May 2023 inauguration speech, a decision that airlines say compounds an already severe rise in the cost of Jet A1 and other operating expenses.

The planned national carrier Nigeria Air is presented at Abuja's Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on 26 May 2023, days before President Muhammadu Buhari leaves office, using an aircraft chartered from Ethiopian Airlines.

A Max Air Boeing 737-3H4 registered 5N-MHM is involved in a rough landing at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, on 7 May 2023, prompting an investigation that later finds the airline's cockpit voice recorder was not being preserved as required.

A review of Nigerian aviation in 2022 shows a sector squeezed by jet fuel costs, a foreign exchange crisis that drove Emirates out of the market, and Dana Air's suspension, even as a new Lagos terminal opened.

Lagos State Government unveiled plans on 15 November 2022 for a new international airport to be built in the Epe area of the state, framing the project as a long-term response to growing congestion at Murtala Muhammed International Airport.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority temporarily grounded Overland Airways' entire ATR fleet on 3 October 2022, ordering an urgent inspection after a routine audit raised concerns over the airline's maintenance record-keeping.

Aviation officials from Nigeria and Ghana held talks on 20 September 2022 aimed at expanding reciprocal route rights under the Single African Air Transport Market, after Nigerian carriers complained of restricted access to the Ghanaian market despite both countries' SAATM commitments.

ValueJet's commercial flights were briefly suspended by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority on 5 September 2022 after the airline missed the scheduled completion date for its annual Air Operator's Certificate renewal audit.

Emirates says it will suspend all flights to and from Nigeria from 1 September 2022 after failing to repatriate $85 million in trapped revenue amid the country's foreign exchange shortage.

A solar power installation project got underway at Akanu Ibiam International Airport, Enugu, on 11 August 2022, part of a Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria pilot scheme to reduce the airport's dependence on diesel generators for its terminal and runway lighting systems.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has suspended Dana Air's operating licences indefinitely from 20 July 2022, after a financial and safety audit found the airline unable to meet its obligations.

Automated e-passport gates went live at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on 9 June 2022, part of a Nigeria Immigration Service push to cut the long queues that have long characterised the airport's arrivals and departures halls.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority reported on 25 May 2022 that Nigeria's commercial aviation industry had gone through the first half of the year without a single fatal accident, extending a run of improved safety performance the regulator traced back to reforms begun in 2017.

The Airline Operators of Nigeria says member airlines will suspend all domestic flights from 9 May 2022 after jet fuel prices nearly quadrupled amid the global fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The International Air Transport Association said on 12 April 2022 that foreign airlines' revenue trapped in Nigeria by forex scarcity had climbed to $550 million, warning that the backlog was now among the largest blocked-funds problems facing any country globally.

President Muhammadu Buhari has commissioned a new international terminal at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, built to process 14 million passengers annually.

Ibom Air took delivery of its fourth Airbus A220 aircraft on 18 February 2022, giving the Akwa Ibom State-owned carrier the fleet capacity it says it needs to begin expanding beyond Nigeria's domestic network into regional West African routes.

The Federal Executive Council approved the concession of Nigeria's four busiest international airports — Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt — to private operators on 14 January 2022, reviving a privatisation drive that had stalled for years amid opposition from aviation unions.

A review of Nigerian aviation in 2021 shows a sector still working to recover from the 2020 pandemic collapse, marked by a new airline launch, the return of the Boeing 737 MAX, and fresh COVID-related disruption late in the year.

The United Kingdom has removed Nigeria and ten other African countries from its COVID-19 travel red list from 15 December 2021, citing widespread community transmission of Omicron within Britain itself.

Nigeria has banned airlines from the UK, Canada and Saudi Arabia from operating into the country from 14 December 2021, reciprocating travel restrictions those nations placed on Nigeria over the Omicron variant.

The federal government announced on 22 November 2021 that from 1 December, only fully vaccinated travellers would be permitted to enter Nigeria by air, tightening border health rules weeks before the Omicron variant triggered a fresh wave of global travel restrictions.

The African Airlines Association renewed its call on 5 November 2021 for governments across the continent to fully implement the Single African Air Transport Market, warning that patchy adoption of open-skies commitments was keeping intra-African fares and connectivity well below their potential.

More than two years after a Bristow Helicopters aircraft ditched in open water off the Nigerian coast, the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau published its final report on 10 October 2021, attributing the incident to a mechanical failure and recommending revised inspection intervals across the offshore helicopter fleet.

Domestic carriers warned on 15 September 2021 that they could be forced to ground flights nationwide as a worsening scarcity of aviation fuel drove prices up by more than 100 percent within weeks and left airlines struggling to secure reliable supply.

Green Africa Airways operated its first commercial flight between Lagos and Abuja on 12 August 2021, ending more than two years of delays in launching Nigeria's newest low-cost carrier.

A new Lagos-headquartered aircraft leasing company backed by the African Export-Import Bank was unveiled on 14 July 2021, aiming to give African carriers, including Nigeria's own airlines, an alternative to costly foreign leasing arrangements.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority grounded Azman Air on 25 June 2021, suspending the carrier's Air Operator's Certificate after what regulators described as a persistent pattern of safety and maintenance infractions.

Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru was among eleven people killed when a Nigerian Air Force aircraft crashed while approaching Kaduna Airport on 21 May 2021, in one of the country's most high-profile air disasters in recent years.

A new IATA assessment released on 8 April 2021 puts 2020 revenue losses for Nigerian airlines above $200 million, underscoring the scale of the pandemic's impact on a domestic industry that was already operating on thin margins before COVID-19 struck.

Nearly four million doses of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine landed at Murtala Muhammed International Airport on 2 March 2021, the first consignment secured through the global COVAX facility as Nigeria began its national inoculation campaign.

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority has lifted its ban on the Boeing 737 MAX, effective 12 February 2021, nearly two years after grounding the aircraft following two fatal crashes.

An expanded cargo terminal at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport opened on 30 January 2021, giving exporters of onions, tomatoes, and other perishable produce from Nigeria's northern states faster access to European and Middle Eastern markets.

The decision came after several months of restricted operations designed to manage passenger volumes through revamped COVID-19 testing protocols at Nigeria's international airports.

The African Airlines Association called on Nigeria and other signatory states to accelerate implementation of the Single African Air Transport Market to help the continent's carriers recover from pandemic losses.

The route's return followed South Africa's phased reopening of its borders to international travel, with the airline operating a reduced initial frequency pending demand recovery.

The addition gave the Akwa Ibom state-backed carrier more scheduling flexibility as it worked to rebuild frequencies that had been cut back during the earlier lockdown period.

Lagos and Abuja reopened to international air traffic under a phased, capped restart, with Emirates and Ethiopian Airlines among the first carriers back and testing protocols required at both ends of the journey.

The South East's only international airport reopened after a year-long closure and a N10 billion runway rebuild, with domestic flights resuming immediately and international service to follow within days.

The airport rolled out a pre-departure and on-arrival PCR testing regime for passengers as authorities prepared to reopen Lagos and Abuja to international flights.

The airline ran a series of repatriation flights bringing home Nigerians stranded in the United Kingdom, South Africa, the United States and elsewhere after COVID-19 border closures halted commercial travel.

The carrier restarted a reduced schedule of domestic flights on the Lagos-Abuja-Port Harcourt corridor after Nigeria's three-and-a-half-month coronavirus grounding.

Lagos and Abuja airports reopened for domestic traffic after a three-and-a-half-month coronavirus shutdown, with airlines running supervised shakedown flights and new passenger protocols in place before the restart.

Akwa Ibom State's new carrier began scheduled commercial flights, becoming the first new Nigerian airline in years to enter the market backed by a state government, with an initial Uyo-Lagos route.

Several carriers placed staff on unpaid leave or cut salaries as the extended flight suspension wiped out revenue, prompting warnings from industry groups about the sector's survival.

The Central Bank of Nigeria announced a N27 billion intervention fund to support airlines and aviation-related businesses whose revenues collapsed under pandemic travel restrictions.

The airport handled a series of special cargo flights carrying medical personnel and protective equipment as Kano State battled a severe COVID-19 outbreak.

The regulator extended the validity of pilot licences, medical certificates and aircraft airworthiness documents due to expire during the lockdown, aligning with ICAO guidance for pandemic-hit states.

The Federal Government ordered a halt to all international passenger flights into Lagos and Abuja from 23 March 2020, closing the country's two main gateways as coronavirus cases climbed.

The talks were aimed at bringing in private capital and operational expertise to Nigeria's busiest airports, with government retaining ownership of the underlying infrastructure under the proposed model.

Regulators credited stricter maintenance oversight and updated pilot training requirements introduced in the years following a string of earlier incidents.

Ratification obliged Nigeria to grant reciprocal traffic rights to airlines from other SAATM member states, a step industry groups had pushed for as a way to boost intra-African connectivity.

Nigeria's civil aviation regulator warned Turkish Airlines in December 2019 that it would be barred from operating into the country from 16 December unless it deployed aircraft large enough to carry all passengers together with their checked baggage.

The new lanes used automated tray-return systems to speed up screening throughput, part of a wider push to cut queue times during the airport's peak morning departure bank.

The airline said the route's return reflected growing confidence in its post-restructuring finances, alongside steady demand from oil and gas sector travellers based in the city.

A Boeing 777 chartered by Air Peace landed in Johannesburg and returned to Lagos with the first batch of more than 300 Nigerians on 11 September 2019, the opening flight of a free repatriation effort mounted as xenophobic attacks against foreign nationals spread across South Africa.

Lagos-based Med-View Airline halted scheduled domestic and Hajj-linked operations in late August 2019 after its remaining active Boeing 737-500 was grounded for technical reasons, leaving the once-listed carrier without an operating aircraft.

President Buhari elevated Hadi Sirika from Minister of State to substantive Minister of Aviation as part of his second-term cabinet, handing him a standalone portfolio and control of the sector's roadmap.

Regulators cleared Air Peace's aircraft as airworthy after completing a fleet-wide audit triggered by a landing incident involving one of the carrier's Boeing 737-300s at Lagos on 23 July 2019, while the Accident Investigation Bureau continued a separate probe into the cause.

Nigeria's largest domestic carrier launched scheduled flights between Lagos and Sharjah in early July 2019, its first venture onto a long-haul international route after several years of expanding across West and Central Africa.

The upgrade added additional X-ray scanning lanes for outbound cargo, reducing processing times that had lengthened as freight volumes through the airport increased.

The Akwa Ibom State Government-owned carrier flew its first scheduled route between Uyo and Lagos, positioning itself on reliability and on-time performance in a domestic market long dogged by delays.

The federal government commissioned a remodelled terminal building and associated fencing works at Ibadan Airport in May 2019, one of several aviation infrastructure projects inaugurated the same weekend alongside a newly installed instrument landing system at Lagos.

The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency announced plans in April 2019 to replace ageing VHF radio equipment at eight remote sites and add six new locations, part of a wider upgrade to pilot-to-controller communication coverage.

Minister of State for Aviation Hadi Sirika announced the airspace ban after a Federal Executive Council meeting, saying no Nigerian carrier flew the type yet but that Air Peace and Arik Air orders made the precaution necessary.

The additional frequency gave the airline more flexibility for business travellers seeking same-day return options between Nigeria's two largest cities.

About 90 percent of flights scheduled for Saturday 16 February were cancelled or rescheduled after Nigeria's electoral commission pushed the presidential vote back to 23 February in the early hours of election day itself, leaving airlines that had already grounded their fleets counting the cost.

Azman Air flight AZM 2316, a Boeing 737-500 travelling from Lagos, made an emergency landing at Port Harcourt International Airport on 3 January 2019 after reporting an engine problem in flight, with all passengers landing safely.

A Russian-built Mi-35M attack helicopter went down near Damasak in northern Borno State on 2 January 2019, killing all five crew members aboard as the aircraft was providing close air support to ground troops during counter-insurgency operations.

The new terminal, funded through a $500 million China Exim Bank loan, is designed to handle 15 million passengers annually and became the first Nigerian airport building directly linked to a rail transit line.

The advisory prompted several carriers to build extra schedule buffers into flights serving Kano, Sokoto and Maiduguri, where dust haze has historically forced diversions and delays during the harmattan season.

The rules set clearer approval timelines and documentation requirements after regulators found some carriers had leased aircraft on short notice with incomplete paperwork earlier in the year.

The directive followed at least three runway excursion incidents involving domestic operators in the first three quarters of 2018, none of which resulted in serious injuries.

The federal government pulled back its flagship national carrier plan just weeks after unveiling Nigeria Air's name and livery in the UK, with the Economic Management Team reportedly opposed to funding it with public money.

The addition allowed the airline to introduce a second daily frequency on its Lagos-Abuja route, part of a phased schedule expansion since it resumed flying earlier in the year.

Works were scheduled in overnight phases to keep the airport open to scheduled daytime traffic, with FAAN citing surface deterioration flagged in a routine pavement inspection.

The airline, once one of Nigeria's largest domestic carriers, restarted with a scaled-back schedule as its search for fresh capital and a strategic core investor continued.

The additional aircraft was aimed at easing capacity pressure during the airline's busiest season, when it operates a large share of Nigeria's pilgrim charter flights to Jeddah and Madinah.

The additions extended the airline's ATR fleet as it continued focusing on regional and secondary routes largely avoided by Nigeria's larger scheduled carriers.

The inquiry followed a rise in passenger complaints about additional charges that only appeared late in the booking process, prompting the consumer regulator to request pricing disclosures from several carriers.

The regulator grounded the indigenous carrier indefinitely after finding it had kept flying scheduled routes more than eight months after its licence was downgraded to charter-only for lacking a second airworthy aircraft.

The facility was designed to give perishable exporters dedicated cold-storage space, addressing years of complaints over spoilage and delays at the airport's cargo terminal.

The proposed carrier would operate a small turboprop fleet on routes linking Uyo to Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt, part of a state-backed push to reduce the region's reliance on road travel.

The new wing added check-in counters, boarding gates and passenger processing capacity as the airport worked to shed its reputation for congestion and outdated facilities.

The suspension affected passengers already booked on the carrier's Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt routes, most of whom were absorbed by rival airlines at prevailing fares.

Regulators pointed to inadequate schedule planning and insufficient aircraft reserves as passengers faced hours-long delays and last-minute cancellations at the height of the Yuletide rush.

The new facility gave controllers a wider field of view over the apron and runway and added updated radar and communications equipment ahead of anticipated Hajj-season traffic growth.

The project followed years of complaints from airlines over the runway's deteriorating surface, which had already forced some operators to limit the aircraft types they scheduled into the airport.

The route's resumption came as the AMCON-appointed management worked through a backlog of maintenance and debt issues that had disrupted the airline's international schedule earlier in the year.

The agreement set designated-carrier and frequency terms for both sides, part of a wider push by Nigerian aviation authorities to expand direct intra-African connectivity.

The proposed terminal was designed to roughly double check-in capacity at Nigeria's busiest domestic hub, with FAAN saying it would seek concession partners to help fund construction.

Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport reopened one day ahead of its extended deadline after a six-week closure that forced every Abuja-bound flight onto a 160-kilometre road diversion through Kaduna, a shutdown the government said was unavoi

The airline had voluntarily grounded its fleet in January after a spate of technical faults, and resumed a reduced schedule once regulators cleared each aircraft individually.

The aviation minister set out the government's plan to shut Abuja's only runway for repairs months before the closure itself, picking Kaduna as the alternative airport over three closer options and drawing immediate criticism over security

Emirates and Kenya Airways both withdrew their Abuja services indefinitely in 2016, citing thin load factors made worse by Nigeria's foreign exchange restrictions, adding two more African and Middle Eastern connections to a growing list of

Aero Contractors, one of Nigeria's oldest carriers, and the smaller First Nation Airways both stopped flying within the same week in 2016, a visible sign of how a recession driven by collapsing oil prices and a battered naira was reaching d

Nigeria posted a 67.36 percent effective implementation score on the International Civil Aviation Organisation's safety oversight audit in March 2016, ahead of the global average, and followed it in July with a new set of Nigerian Civil Avi

United Airlines confirmed its last flight between Lagos and Houston would operate on 30 June 2016, following Iberia's withdrawal in May, as the International Air Transport Association pressed Nigeria to release more than $600 million in tic

All 11 people aboard a Bristow Helicopters Sikorsky S-76C++ survived after it ditched into the Atlantic Ocean returning from an offshore oil platform, but the incident, the type's second in six months, pushed regulators to ground

The consortium proposed a phased relaunch beginning with domestic routes, though officials cautioned that any revival would depend on resolving legacy liabilities tied to the original carrier's collapse.

The upgrade gave controllers radar coverage over a stretch of airspace previously monitored only through pilot position reports, allowing for reduced separation minima on affected routes.

Chronic Jet A1 shortages left passengers stranded at airports across the country for much of 2016, prompting the regulator to brand the situation nightmarish as the Airline Operators of Nigeria reported domestic capacity had been

The additional frequency gave passengers more flexibility for same-day return trips between Lagos and Port Harcourt, a route the airline said had shown consistent load factors through the preceding year.

The agreement extended repayment terms on a portion of the airline's outstanding loans, giving it breathing room as it continued to operate Nigeria's largest domestic and international network.

A new Central Bank of Nigeria forex policy briefly raised hopes of relief for airlines starved of dollars, but the exchange rate that followed left carriers losing as much as 40 percent of accumulated revenue on every dollar

A new government blueprint for Nigerian aviation set out plans for a revived national carrier alongside cargo airports, an aircraft maintenance hub and a national leasing company, honouring a campaign pledge made the previous

Nigeria retained its seat on the International Civil Aviation Organization's governing Council at the 39th Assembly in Montreal, continuing an unbroken run of representation in the Part II category alongside Egypt and South

Nigeria's bad-debt agency moved to take direct control of one of the country's oldest airlines in February 2016, appointing a receiver manager and assuming a 60 percent stake as part of a wider push to recover exposure across the

Med-View Airline expanded its widebody fleet with a Boeing 747 and a Boeing 777-200 within the space of a week, gearing up to airlift more than 10,000 Nigerian pilgrims and armed forces personnel to Saudi Arabia for the 2016

The new vehicles were distributed to airports previously flagged in safety audits for ageing rescue and firefighting equipment, part of a broader push to meet international emergency-response benchmarks.

The federal government moved to ease airlines' dollar shortages by adding aviation to a priority list for forex concessions in October 2016, but the intervention came only after fares on some international routes had already

A year defined by fuel scarcity, a currency crisis and a wave of airline retrenchment nonetheless ended without a single fatal air accident in Nigeria, as global figures confirmed 2016 as one of the safest years in aviation

Saudi Arabia's civil aviation authority narrowed the list of carriers cleared to fly Nigerian pilgrims to the 2016 Hajj from six to three, reviving a long-running dispute over a bilateral agreement requiring traffic to be split

Emirates was cleared to resume flights between Dubai and Lagos from 1 December 2015 after Nigeria's aviation authorities lifted a suspension that had kept the carrier off the route since March of that year.

President Muhammadu Buhari's cabinet announcement on 25 November 2015 named Senator Hadi Sirika as Minister of State for Aviation, filling a post left vacant since Osita Chidoka departed earlier in the year and giving the sector its first s

The incoming APC administration set out a long-term reform agenda for Nigerian aviation, built around six pillars including a privately-run national carrier and the concession of the country's four major airport terminals.

Port Harcourt International Airport topped a global list of the world's worst airports in November 2015, with Lagos and Abuja also ranked among the continent's ten worst, though the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria rejected the survey'

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria confirmed in October 2015 that it had airlifted more than 41,000 pilgrims home from Saudi Arabia, closing out a pilgrimage season overshadowed by the Mina stampede weeks earlier, which killed thousand

Foreign carriers sold tickets in naira but found the currency increasingly difficult to convert as the Central Bank of Nigeria rationed scarce dollars, and by mid-2015 the International Air Transport Association was reporting blocked airlin

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority issued a revised edition of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Regulations in 2015, updating the rulebook first published in 2006 to reflect the most recent Standards and Recommended Practices adopted by ICAO.

All seven occupants of a Nigerian Air Force Dornier DO228, including two pilots and two engineers, died when the aircraft went out of control shortly after departure from Kaduna and crashed into a residential building.

The crash of a Bristow-operated Sikorsky S-76 helicopter in the Oworonshoki area of Lagos, which killed all six people on board, led the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority to order a comprehensive audit of every airline in the country and a

An Aero Contractors Boeing 737-400 climbing out of Lagos for Abuja on 21 July 2015 returned to land after a passenger spotted a tear in the wing, with investigators later finding that part of the aircraft's inboard ground spoiler had ripp

A Med-View Airline flight carrying 82 passengers, including Borno State officials, marked the resumption of commercial services at Maiduguri International Airport after the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria reopened the facility for the

An Emirates Boeing 777-200LR bound for Dubai struck a parked HAK Air Boeing 737 while taxiing at Murtala Muhammed Airport on the night of 6 July 2015, after runway maintenance forced a late change of route across a poorly lit apron.

All five people on board a SWAT Technology-operated Hawker 800XP escaped unhurt after the aircraft's nose gear collapsed during a night landing at Port Harcourt, with investigators citing disorientation caused by unserviceable runway edge l

An Aero Contractors Boeing 737-500 climbing out of Lagos for Kaduna in June 2015 lost cabin pressurisation at altitude after a recent engine change, forcing the crew to descend and don oxygen masks before diverting safely.

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria disclosed in May 2015 that it had recovered 57 percent of the non-performing loans it purchased from banks during the financial crisis, a rescue that spanned twelve Nigerian airlines including Arik

A months-long nationwide fuel shortage, worsened by a strike among oil tanker drivers, culminated in late May 2015 in widespread flight cancellations, with Aero Contractors alone grounding roughly 80 percent of its schedule.

With Bi-Courtney's privately operated MMA2 domestic terminal running profitably at Lagos while government-run terminals struggled with congestion and neglect, aviation planners in 2015 held it up as proof of concept for a long-delayed plan

With movement nationwide restricted for the presidential and legislative polls, all ten of Nigeria's domestic airlines stayed grounded on election day, with the industry estimated to have lost around N200 million in a single day of suspende

Washington approved the transfer of Alpha Jet light attack aircraft to the Nigerian Air Force in the first half of 2015, giving the military additional air power for its campaign against Boko Haram in the country's northeast.

African Union heads of state adopted a declaration establishing the Single African Air Transport Market in January 2015, with Nigeria among the founding group of eleven countries pledging unconditional implementation of the 1999 Yamoussoukr