The minister of aviation, Hadi Sirika has said that many Nigerian airlines will not survive the after-effects of COVID-19 economic crisis.
He said that despite the fact that the pandemic has so far affected different sectors of the economy, the aviation business took the hardest hits.
He said the industry in Nigeria has suffered over N170 billion loss which he said would never be recovered.
“Certainly in civil aviation, we’re in very difficult moments like everyone else. All of this started because someone travelled. Unfortunately, he came back honm with it and the consequence is what we’ve been going through.
“We are very aware of our responsibilities and the weight attached to this. We are worst hit among all the sectors. Some billions is being lost by the airlines monthly, thanks to COVID-19. The sector is highly regulated and very coordinated and has set standards that must be followed at all times, regardless, because we speak to safety.
“This is the situation of civil aviation. It is really a pathetic one and I can guarantee you that several airlines won’t come out of this unfortunately.”
