Air Peace has announced that it has set aside three aircraft from its fleet to serve as buffers in a strategic move to reduce flight delays and cancellations across its operations. This initiative, introduced on May 10, 2025, is already improving the airline’s on-time performance, with the carrier currently achieving 85 percent daily on-time departures.
The Chairman and CEO of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, made this disclosure during a press briefing at the airline’s corporate headquarters in Lagos. He noted that the decision to increase the buffer fleet from one to three aircraft is aimed at swiftly addressing technical issues such as bird strikes or faults that would otherwise disrupt scheduled services.
“We have increased our buffer from one aircraft to three. These aircraft are parked in case any of our planes develop a minor or major fault, be it a bird strike or anything else. This is to further tackle delays and cancellations,” Onyema stated.
He explained that many of the disruptions attributed to the airline are actually due to external factors beyond its control, including adverse weather conditions, runway maintenance, inadequate landing infrastructure, and frequent bird strikes.
“Since the start of 2025 alone, we’ve recorded over 30 bird strikes. In the last five years, we’ve had 115. These incidents take aircraft out of service, sometimes for days, and yet, passengers often do not realise these are safety-related and unavoidable delays,” Onyema explained.
Highlighting the scale of Air Peace’s operations, Onyema stated that although a 30 percent delay rate for the airline may sound high, it translates to more delayed flights than smaller airlines due to the airline’s large route network and capacity.
He added, “Air Peace currently operates 49 aircraft—36 of which were outrightly purchased and four are on wet lease. We operate more daily flights than all other domestic airlines in Nigeria combined.”
Onyema also revealed that Air Peace will commence flight operations to the Caribbean, China, and India by September 2025. He noted the airline has already begun flying to St. Kitts and Jamaica, and is increasing its wide-body fleet in preparation for China operations through wet lease arrangements.
In another major development, Air Peace has been granted landing rights at London Heathrow Airport, and plans to launch Abuja–Heathrow flights on October 26, 2025, while continuing operations to Gatwick.
“Today, Air Peace is still flying to London. We’ve passed rigorous audits by British and European aviation authorities. Over the past year and a half, we have not cancelled a single UK-bound flight, except when requested by the airport due to runway repairs,” he said.
Onyema expressed gratitude to the British authorities, Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Festus Keyamo, and President Bola Tinubu for supporting indigenous businesses and enabling Air Peace’s international expansion.
Reassuring the public, Onyema stated: “Air Peace has zero tolerance for unsafe practices. Our reputation is built on safety, and that is what we sell to Nigerians. We’re proud of the confidence both local and international regulators have in us.”
