The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has decried the rate airlines are going under in Nigeria and said that it is the responsibility of government to halt the short life span and help the airlines to grow.

He made this known in his remark at a conference organised by the League of Airports and Aviation Correspondents (LAAC) in Lagos at the weekend.

Keyamo said that it has become a responsibility of the Nigerian government to make sure that domestic airlines exist for a long time and also are profitable, noting that although past government did not see the importance of supporting these carriers to prolong their life but the Tinubu administration is committed to save the airline because doing so will protect jobs in the sector, give a boost to GDP and generate revenue to government.

He said that it should be known that aviation sector grows on the wings of domestic airlines because without them there would be no industry.

"I don't think for many years different governments that have come and gone have prioritized growth of domestic airlines as one of their focal points. I think support for our local operators is very critical. Without them, there would be no industry. We put it as one of our very focal points. Support our local operators. Make sure to enhance their capacities because for so many years we have had a lot of mortality rates, high mortality rates in the aviation industry, in terms of airlines coming and going under. Very high mortality," the Minister said.

As part of helping the airlines to survive and grow, Keyamo said that the first thing is to enhance the capacity of the airlines, noting that currently there is paucity of operating aircraft, which has contributed in the high cost of fares.