Prospections for the development of aviation in the British
West African Territory trace as far back as 1944 when, following
World War II,
Lord Swinton ordered the first studies. The
British Ministry of Civil Aviation supported the
Sanford Committee, which was established to that particular end, and both entities recommended the formation of the
West African Air Transport Authority. The
order-in-council enacting the formation of the West African Air Transport Authority (ATA) was signed by
King George VI on . in 1958 The origins of West African Airways Corporation can be traced back to 1946, when it was established by the
British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC), and economically supported by four West African
British colonies, Nigeria being the major shareholder (68%), followed by the Gold Coast (29.5%), Sierra Leone (2%), and The Gambia holding the balance. following the delivery of its first aircraft, an event that took place on 14 September 1947. The
De Havilland Dove aircraft inaugurated WAAC's first scheduled service from
Lagos to
Calabar during October 1947. The company was aimed at providing the
British West Africa with air transport facilities, to connecting it with
Dakar and
Khartoum in order to provide passengers with a gateway to the
Americas and the
Middle East, respectively, and to operating feeder flights that connected with the
Europe-bound BOAC
Hermes services at
Accra, Lagos and
Kano. WAAC became very popular in the early 1950s for offering at least four
Bristol Freighter-operated second-class services at discounted airfares, cheaper than any other mean of transportation. Two of them were the "Coastal Flyer", that covered the between Accra and Lagos in hours for
£4 at 1951 prices, and the "Hausa Flyer" that covered the Accra–Lagos–
Ibadan–
Jos–Kano route, for which the Lagos–Kano leg took 4 hours —against an almost two-day journey by train— and was £3 (1951 prices) cheaper than the train. WAAC assets and liabilities were inherited by WAAC (Nigeria), that operated as "Nigerian Airways" effective 1 October 1958. WAAC (Nigeria) was later rebranded
Nigeria Airways.
Livery The WAAC
livery consisted of a green cheatline bordered by thinner gold lines. An airborne green elephant named
Skypower was painted in a golden circle background at both sides, in the forward part of each aircraft. ==Destinations==