Nigeria's Air Peace eyes Norse Atlantic pact for Gatwick ops

Air Peace is hoping to cooperate with Norse Atlantic to launch flights between Lagos and London Gatwick, as it struggles to secure its own slots at the British gateway, Nigeria's Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, told local media. However, the airlines have held only initial talks so far. Keyamo recently visited the United Kingdom to meet with government officials and lobby for Air Peace. However, the UK Department of Transport has limited options to support the carrier as slot allocation at British airports is governed by independent coordinator Airport Coordination Limited (ACL). "We are hopeful that the fallout of the meeting would achieve its purpose of enabling Air Peace Airline to commence its flight operations into the United Kingdom, which Nigerians have been yearning for," said COO Oluwatoyin Olajide. However, Norse Atlantic Senior Vice-President (Communications) Philip Allport told ch-aviation that the airlines only had "an initial informal meeting" regarding the potential cooperation. Norse Atlantic holds 44 weekly slots at Gatwick for the Summer 2024 season. An ACL capacity report reviewed by ch-aviation shows that Air Peace did not apply for slots at the airport for the upcoming season.<br/>