Barely 24 hours after Nigeria sealed Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA) with Brazil, the Federal Government has granted Air Peace, one of Nigeria’s airlines, the licence to operate direct flights from Lagos to São Paulo under the new deal.
The Chief Executive Officer of the airline, Mr. Allen Onyema, confirmed that the airline had secured approval to commence direct passenger flights between Lagos and São Paulo under the Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA)
According to him, the flight service is scheduled to begin by late November 2025, marking the first direct air flight between both countries by a Nigerian carrier.
Speaking to journalists on the licensing of his airline for direct flights across the two countries on Tuesday, Onyema described the Lagos–São Paulo route as long overdue and a major catalyst for Nigeria’s aviation sector.
A news report from the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quoted the industry top players as saying that for a start, the airline will start with three weekly flights and increase frequency of the flights based on demand and other operational conditions
The news agency reported: “Mr Allen Onyema, Air Peace CEO has announced that the airline will commence direct flights from Lagos to São Paulo by late November.
“He made this known to journalists in Brasília on Tuesday, following a bilateral aviation deal signed during President Bola Tinubu’s state visit to Brazil.
“We are looking forward to starting operations towards the last week of November to December this year”, it added.
The Air Peace boss claims were also confirmed by the Presidency. Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Tinubu, said that Air Peace would soon begin direct flights from Lagos to São Paulo based on the signing of the BASA between the two countries.
The BASA was signed in Brasília on Monday by Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, and Brazil’s Minister of Ports and Airports, Silvio Filhos, in the presence of Presidents Bola Tinubu and Brazilian President, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, amid other bilateral relations deals of the Nigerian President’s official visit to Brazil.
It would be recalled that the plan to establish direct flights between Nigeria and Brazil was first mulled when President Tinubu met the Brazilian President at the African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in February last year.
Tinubu reaffirmed this commitment in August 2024 during a meeting with Brazil’s newly appointed Ambassador to Nigeria, Carlos Jose Areias, in Abuja, noting that the lack of direct air flights between the two countries has been limiting trade, tourism, and cultural exchange, among other negative impacts.