Nigeria’s Firstnation Airways resumes operations after MRO grounding

Firstnation Airways resumed flights Sept 18 after its Airbus A319 fleet was grounded for more than 3 weeks for maintenance work. Firstnation Airways operates 2 CFM56-powered Airbus A319s. Firstnation Airways head of commercial Serah Awogbade announced Sept 1 the airline had suspended operations to perform maintenance work, a situation that was further compounded by currency issues. “Current foreign exchange constraint, coupled with over 70% devaluation of Naira, partly contributed in no small measure,” Awogbade said. The maintenance suspension had been planned, the airline said, and passengers were notified well in advance. Originally, flights were meant to resume on or before Sept. 15, but according to local media reports, the grounding was extended because the parts were delayed by customs clearances. <br/>