Green Africa Airways – the newly launched airline in Nigeria has signed a deal worth $11.7 billion with Boeing for the purchase of 100 737 Max8 aircraft. The biggest aircraft deal in Africa, is yet to be finalized will be split into 50 firm aircraft and 50 options. The transaction is the second major deal signed by Boeing with a Nigerian airline.
Green Africa Airways is backed by a group of aviation industry experts led by Tom Horton, former chairman and chief executive of American Airlines; William Shaw, founder and former chief executive of VivaColombia and Virasb Vahidi, former chief commercial officer of American Airlines.
Boeing has predicted that Africa will require 1,190 new airplanes over the next two decades as it boosts both intra-continental and inter-continental connectivity. The Nigerian low-price carrier is working towards establishing a strong foothold in the Nigerian market before expanding to other African countries.
“Today is a historic day for the Nigerian and African aviation industry. This landmark deal takes us much closer to our long-held dream of building a world-class airline that will unlock a new realm of positive possibilities for millions of customers. Broadly speaking, this deal is a bold symbol of the dynamism, resilience and soaring entrepreneurial drive of the next generation of Nigerians and Africans,” said Babawande Afolabi, Founder & CEO, Green Africa Airways.
“The strategic partnership with Boeing positions Green Africa Airways to expand and improve air travel for customers in Nigeria, and further strengthens the relationship between the United States, Nigeria and Africa,” he said further.
This announcement comes at a time when African countries are talking about the African Open Skies Agreement which 10 countries including Nigeria are yet to sign. A few days ago also, Nigeria’s president Muhammadu Buhari commissioned a new terminal at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja and he said that the government is “committed to developing Nigeria into a regional air transportation hub, thereby assuming leadership in the aviation sub sector in Africa”.
“The growth potential for air travel across Nigeria and Africa is extraordinary with the airplane fleet expected to more than double over the next 20 years,” Ihssane Mounir, Boeing’s senior VP of commercial sales, said in a news release.
Nigeria’s Aviation Industry
Although 737 Max is Boeing’s fastest selling airplane in history with over 4800 orders, it is worthy to note that the aircraft was in the news after a Lion Air 737 Max plane crashed in Indonesia in October, killing all the 189 passengers onboard.
Safety Experts involved in the crash investigation revealed to the Wall Street Journal that Boeing did not disclose the possible issues with the flight control System on the 737 Max before the crash.
According to the report, the automated stall-prevention system on Boeing 737 MAX 8 and MAX 9 models — intended to help cockpit crews avoid mistakenly raising a plane’s nose dangerously high — under unusual conditions can push it down unexpectedly and so strongly that flight crews can’t pull it back up. However, the Federal Aviation Administration of the United States of America and Boeing are considering the need for software adjustments to the 737 Max to address that system. An Indonesian regulator’s report also pointed to maintenance work and procedures that had failed to fix the aircraft’s repeated problems.
Lion Air, one of the biggest customers for the 737 Max has also threatened to cancel its aircraft orders from Boeing after a statement from the planemaker suggested that the carrier was to blame for the crash. The crash has put the stock of Boeing under pressure.
The deal between Boeing and Green Africa Airways will help create over 1,000 jobs in Nigeria, a country grappling with unemployment, currently as high as 23.1 percent.
