Azman Air, a Nigerian airline, has renewed its Air Transport Licence after the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) suspended it due to its inability to renew the license and unpaid legacy debt.

Azman Air, a privately owned Nigerian airline, has officially renewed its Air Transport Licence (ATL). The announcement came about 24 hours after the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) suspended the carrier’s ATL.

Captain Musa Nuhu, Director General of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), signed Azman Air’s new ATL on September 16th in Abuja. Azman Airlines is now authorized to fly for five years, from 2022 to 2027, under the new Air Transport License, before another renewal is required.

Azman Air had not only failed to renew its flying license on its own, but the airline also owed Naira N1.2 billion in legacy payments. The legacy debt was incurred as a result of the 5% Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) and Cargo Sale Charge (CSC) levied on the sale of passenger and cargo services.
Following the renewal of the Air Transport License, the airline can now resume operations. Furthermore, Azman Air has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) to structure the repayment of the outstanding debt, which is based on a monthly payment of N50 million until the debt is eventually settled.

After an inexplicable initial reluctance, Azman Air has also submitted tax and security clearance forms to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). The tax and security clearance are two of the documents required by the Civil Aviation Authority to issue and renew an Air Transport License (ATL) or Air Operator Certificate (AOC).
Azman Air’s N1.2 billion legacy debt stemming from the 5% Ticket Sales Charge (TSC) and Cargo Sales Charge (CSC) is divided among five Nigerian aviation agencies:

1. The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA)
2. The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA)
3. The Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB)
4. The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMET)
5. The Nigerian College of Aviation Technology (NCAT)

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) receives 58% of Azman Air’s debt, while the other four agencies share the remaining 42%.
Azman Air is a privately owned Nigerian airline that was founded in 2010.
According to ch-aviation, the airline has a fleet of seven aircraft, five of which are short/medium-haul Boeing B737s, and one Airbus A340-600. However, only two Boeing B737-500s are in service, with the remainder of the fleet being stored. The two operating aircraft are the 29-year-old 5N-HBY, which has 120 seats, and the 24-year-old 5N-AIS, which has 112 seats.

According to the Official Airline Guide (OAG), the airline will have deployed 413,912 seats on return flights from Nigeria by the end of the third quarter of 2022, for a total capacity of 293,998,784 Available Seat Kilometres (ASKs). The airline’s busiest service during the same period is the domestic service between Lagos and Kano, with a total of 64,428 seats, followed by Kano to Lagos and Abuja to Kano. With the Airbus A340 in storage, the airline is unable to provide intercontinental services; additionally, Azman Air will only provide domestic services during the first nine months of 2022. Azman Air is Nigeria’s eighth-largest airline in terms of frequency.

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