Reports from the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) have revealed that no fewer than 3 662,337 passengers were ferried among 36 domestic and international airlines in Nigeria between January and March 2023.
The report, which was obtained by Nairametrics, also revealed that 185,953 flights were operated by domestic and international airlines within the period.
The breakdown of the report indicates that 25 international airlines airlifted 870,776 passengers inbound and outbound, as many more Nigerians may have left the shores of the country within the first quarter of the year than those that came into the country as the japa syndrome continues.
Virtually all the airlines recorded more outbound passengers than inbound within the period.
The prevalence of outbound passengers and key international airlines
Further breakdown of the passenger traffic showed that the 25 international airlines had 375,700 inbound passengers within the period, while another 495,076 traffic was recorded as outbound passengers in quarter one 2023. In all, there were 870,776 passengers.
The 25 international carriers are Africa World Airlines (AWA), Air Cote d’Ivoire, Air France, Air Peace (international routes), Asky Airlines, BADR Airlines, British Airways, Cronos Airlines, Delta Airlines, Egypt Air, and Ethiopian Airlines.
Others are Kenya Airways, KLM Airlines, Lufthansa Airlines, Middle East Airlines, Qatar Airways, Royal Air Maroc, Rwandair, Saudi Airlines, South African Airways, TAAG Angola, Tarco Airlines, Turkish Airlines, United Airlines, and Virgin Atlantic Airways.
According to the report, Ethiopian Airlines for five years had the highest number of air passenger movements within the period.
Key players and flight statistics for international and domestic routes
The report indicated that East African Airlines had 51,320 inbound and 75,927 outbound passengers.
In all, the airline ferried a total of 127,247 passengers between January and March this year.
Ethiopian Airlines operates from five airports in Nigeria which include Lagos, Abuja, Kano, Port Harcourt, and Enugu airports.
Also, the Middle East carrier, Qatar Airways recorded the airline with the second-highest number of passengers ferried into and out of Nigeria in the first quarter of 2023 with a total passenger volume of 114, 225.
The breakdown further reveals that the airline recorded 49,830 passengers as inbound and 64,395 as outbound within the period, while British Airways had the second most ferried passengers in and out of Nigeria in quarter one of 2023 with 66,417 passengers.
The statistics indicated that the Britain flag carrier had 28,944 passengers inbound and 37, 423 outbound within the period, while the third on the list, Asky Airline had 49,142 passengers. The airline had 22,433 inbound and 26,709 outbound passengers within the period.
Another European carrier, Lufthansa Airlines had a total passenger traffic of 52,277 in the first quarter of 2023.
The breakdown shows 23,140 as inbound and 29,137 as outbound passengers within the period.
Also, Virgin Atlantic ferried a total of 44,514 passengers within the period. The British airline had 18,845 inbound and 25,669 outbound passengers within the period.
Besides, Air France carried a total of 45,165 passengers in the first quarter of 2023 with 19,823 and 25,340 as inbound and outbound passengers, respectively.
The only Nigerian carrier on the regional and international routes, Air Peace, had 36,308 passengers within the period, as the airline ferried 15,962 and 20,346 inbound and outbound passengers within the period, and 185,953 flights were operated by domestic and international airlines within the period.
For international airlines, a total number of 3,073 flights were operated by the 25 airlines, while 182,880 were operated by the domestic airline operators.
Recall that Nigeria recorded a total passenger movement of 16, 172, 433 in 2022.
The figure was over one million higher than the 2021 figure of 15 million passenger movement.
During the period, which was between January to December 2022, domestic airlines airlifted a total of 12, 668, 741 made up of 6, 309, 664 inbound and 6,359, 077 outbound passenger movement, respectively and when combined with international passenger traffic, the country recorded 16,172, 433 passenger movement in the period under focus.
The document, which was equally obtained from the NCAA, showed that in 2022, 26 airlines carried out a total of 13,003 international operations to and from Nigeria, while 11 airlines operated 80, 328 domestic flights.