Hate him or love him, Allen Onyema, the CEO of Air Peace, would always give his compatriots reasons to talk about him in a good light.
If you are in doubt, you will have a rethink considering the feat recorded by his airline recently.
His airline, it was gathered, has recorded another first in the history of Nigeria’s aviation, after flying directly to Israel – no direct flight had been conducted between Nigeria and Israel before now.
Air Peace flew to the country penultimate week when Israeli nationals were evacuated from Nigeria amidst the Coronavirus pandemic.
It was also gathered that Air Peace also flew 14 hours direct flight to China to airlift COVID-19 materials meant for Nigeria.
Indeed, as a businessman, Onyema has proved that he is blessed with the proverbial magic wand.
A cursory look at his profile, especially since he founded his airline company in 2013, attests to his wizardry as a businessman. At the outset, many had written him off, but the Anambra State-born lawyer was unfazed over the criticisms.
All he set out to achieve is to create an agency that will not only make a big difference but also be among the best.
Interestingly, today, he is being rated as one of the leaders in the industry while his aspiration to turn Air Peace into a five-star value carrier is being met.
Of course, the roads have not been totally paved with either gold or roses, as he has encountered a lot of challenges, including alleged conspiracy from competitors and insufficient freedom to operate commercially.
His meteoric rise in the aviation business is a thing many Nigerians are happy about as he continues to score many firsts.
Many would not forget in a hurry how he evacuated Nigerians free of charge from South Africa in the midst of xenophobic attacks which led to a spike in tensions between the two countries.
